Social capitalism: an economic paradigm for the transfer and commercialisation of technology
by Woodrow W. Clark, Xing Li
International Journal of Technology Transfer and Commercialisation (IJTTC), Vol. 3, No. 1, 2004

Abstract: A new economic paradigm has emerged over the last 30 years, mainly in a few European countries, especially the Nordic countries over the last ten years, some states within the USA and the People's Republic of China: social capitalism. The core issues of this new form of economic system were exposed in the US 2000 election, which pitted the forces of the ''old economic paradigm'' against the ''new economic paradigm''. These issues are poised to repeat themselves in the USA in 2002 and again in 2004. The conflict is represented in the political economy of both party candidates as a dramatic move from the old economy of the 1980 era of Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan toward a more compassionate government and economic model. Due to the selection of the US president by the American Supreme Court, the old economy forces ''won'' the White House. Nevertheless, the elements and forces of the new economy are pervasive and well established in many American states. What the new economy ''social capitalism'' paradigm argues is that government is not invisible, as in the Adam Smith ideal ''free market'' form of capitalism. Nor is government all intrusive, as with Keynes or even Schumpeter. Instead, government must be active and protect societal issues that impact on every citizen in all sectors that have an impact on an economy: education, infrastructure, health, water, energy, and the environment. Government's role is to provide guidance through regulation and to stimulate business and economic growth through investment. More recently (2002), the revelations of the excesses and abuses of a ''free market'' by private corporations, such as Enron in the USA, demonstrate the need for an active government role in business development and operations in critical infrastructure sectors. This paper examines not only the philosophical roots of social capitalism, but also gives short business cases of how business development can be enhanced through the transfer and commercialisation of energy and environmental technologies. Our premise is that, if nations are to advance then they must share in the commercialisation of knowledge capital, innovations, and new business developments for the benefit of everyone. Competition must be replaced by collaboration.

Online publication date: Fri, 12-Sep-2003

The full text of this article is only available to individual subscribers or to users at subscribing institutions.

 
Existing subscribers:
Go to Inderscience Online Journals to access the Full Text of this article.

Pay per view:
If you are not a subscriber and you just want to read the full contents of this article, buy online access here.

Complimentary Subscribers, Editors or Members of the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Technology Transfer and Commercialisation (IJTTC):
Login with your Inderscience username and password:

    Username:        Password:         

Forgotten your password?


Want to subscribe?
A subscription gives you complete access to all articles in the current issue, as well as to all articles in the previous three years (where applicable). See our Orders page to subscribe.

If you still need assistance, please email subs@inderscience.com