Beyond Markets and Hierarchies: Toward a New Synthesis of American Business History
Author(s)
R. Lamoreaux, Naomi; M. G. Raff, Daniel; Temin, Peter
Abstract
Naomi R. Lamoreaux, Daniel M. G. Raff, and Peter Temin offer a new synthesis of the past two centuries of American business history. Moving beyond the markets-versus-hierarchies framework that underlies the previously dominant interpretation of Alfred D. Chandler, Jr., they highlight the great variety of coordination mechanizations in use in the economy at any given time. Drawing on recent theoretical work in economics, they show how the relative advantages and disadvantages of these different mechanisms have shifted in complex and often unpredictable ways as a result of changing economic circumstances. An important advantage of this perspective, they contend, is that it allows them to avoid the teleology that has characterized so much writing in the field. As a result, Lamoreaux, Raff, and Temin can situate the “New Economy” of the late twentieth century in broad historical context without succumbing to the temptation to view it as a climactic stage in the process of economic development. Their essay thus provides a particularly persuasive example of the importance of business history to our understanding of national and international history.
