Why Perestroika Failed The Politics and Economics of Socialist Transformation

Gorbachev's reforms brought high hopes in the West and empty shelves in the East. Why Perestroika Failed argues that successful reform is only possible on the basis of a sound understanding of market and political processes. Using an Austrian market process approach to analyse the economics of the Soviet system, and a public choice one to sound understanding of market and political address the political dimension, Boettke argues that Gorbachev's reforms were always destined to fail. In part perestroika failed because it was never really implemented. But nonetheless, even if all the major proposals and decrees had been scrupulously adhered to, they would not have produced the structural changes necessary to revive the former Soviet economy. Knowing why perestroika failed is crucially important as the former Soviet republics and East and Central Europe try and chart a new course.