Violence and Social Orders: A Conceptual Framework for Interpreting Recorded Human History (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9780521761734)

All societies must deal with the possibility of violence, and they do so in different ways. This book integrates the problem of violence into a larger social science and historical framework, showing how economic and political behavior are closely linked. Most societies, which we call natural states, limit violence by political manipulation of the economy to create privileged interests. These privileges limit the use of violence by powerful individuals, but doing so hinders both economic and political development. In contrast, modern societies create open access to economic and political organizations, fostering political and economic competition. The book provides a framework for understanding the two types of social orders, why open access societies are both politically and economically more developed, and how some 25 countries have made the transition between the two types.

Author: Douglass C. North, John Joseph Wallis, Barry R. Weingast
ISBN-10: 0521761735
ISBN-13: 9780521761734
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Language: English
Published: 02/26/2009
Pages: 346
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.40lbs
Size: 9.10h x 6.10w x 1.20d

Review Citation(s):
Chronicle of Higher Education 05/08/2009 pg. 21
Choice 01/01/2010