Distribution and Growth after Keynes: A Post-Keynesian Guide

This book offers an assessment of theories of distribution and growth after Keynes. It presents an overview of the main contributions with a particular focus on the development of post-Keynesian/Kaleckian models.In the first part of the book, Eckhard Hein presents a comprehensive overview of the main approaches towards distribution and growth including the contributions of Harrod and Domar, old and new neoclassical theories including the fundamental capital controversy critique, the post-Keynesian contributions of Kaldor, Pasinetti, Thirlwall and Robinson, and finally the approaches by Kalecki and Steindl. In the second part of the book neo- and post-Kaleckian models are gradually developed, introducing saving from wages, international trade, technological progress, interest and credit. Issues of ‘financialisation’ are also explored and empirical results related to the different models are presented. This unique book is designed for courses in distribution and growth in graduate programmes or at the advanced undergraduate level. It can also be used as supplementary reading for classes in macroeconomics. The book should also be of value for researchers interested in issues of distribution and growth.

Table of Contents:
Contents: 1. Introduction 2. From Keynes to Domar and Harrod: Considering the Capacity Effect of Investment and an Attempt at Dynamic Theory 3. Neoclassical DIstribution and Growth Theory: Old and New – and a Critique 4. Post-Keynesian Distribution and Growth Theories I: Kaldor, Pasinetti, Thirlwall and Robinson 5. Post-Keynesian Distribution and Growth Theories II: Kalecki and Steindl 6. The Basic Kaleckian Distribution and Growth Models 7. Extending Kaleckian Models I: Saving out of Wages and Open Economy Issues 8. Extending Kaleckian Models II: Technical Progress 9. Extending Kaleckian Models III: Interest and Credit 10. Extending Kaleckian Models IV: Finance-dominated Capitalism 11. The Kaleckian Models and Classical, Marxian and Harrodian Critique 12. Conclusions Appendix References Index

About the Author :
Eckhard Hein, Professor of Economics, Institute for International Political Economy, Berlin School of Economics and Law, Germany

Review :
‘Eckhard Hein's book is a great accomplishment in that it is a long comprehensive, and somewhat technical treatment, and yet at the same time an entertaining read. At 576 pages, Distribution and Growth after Keynes: A Post-Keynesian Guide reviews growth theory contributions ranging from the classical economists to new growth theory to Michael Kalecki, with many stops in between. Despite this encyclopedic coverage, however, it is not an encyclopedia. Rather, it is a critical review with the ultimate aim of developing a model that can explain current real-world developments.' ‘At a time when both the academic and the political establishment combine to convince us that there is no alternative to finance dominated capitalism, this lucidly argued book provides a refreshing intellectual challenge to conventional wisdom. Despite its relatively modest title in Distribution and Growth after Keynes: A Post-Keynesian Guide Professor Eckhard Hein achieves much more than just guiding the reader through the literature. With many original insights he discriminates with masterly skill among a wide range of theories about long term capitalistic growth, contrasting them against mainstream neoclassical growth models. He weaves his argument with stylized facts and statistical analyses to provide us with a coherent view of complex issues like class conflict and cooperation, the nature of the modern firm and its financial structure, technical progress, external trade and financial globalization, topics not dealt with in most over-simplified aggregate growth models. The book should be an essential reading not only for all researchers in the area but also for students who want to be equipped to imagine a feasible economic alternative in a rigorous way with the help of economic theory.’ ‘The recent global financial and economic recession has underscored the shortcomings of mainstream macroeconomic and growth theory. Hein provides an excellent guide to an alternative theory that draws on the ideas of Kalecki and Steindl. After reviewing the contributions of these pioneers, he provides an authoritative discussion of theoretical models, empirical analyses and controversies related to this tradition. The book can be expected to draw the attention of students and scholars to an approach to the study of growth and distribution that has much to offer.’ ‘At a time where income inequality is once again the focus of attention of economists, politicians and the general public, Hein’s book is a welcome and pedagogical addition to the literature as it presents a fully integrated overview of the post-Keynesian models of growth and income distribution, dealing with the classics of the field as well as the latest extensions, to which Eckhard Hein has himself contributed.’