The Economic Sociology of Capitalism

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Edited by Victor Nee and Richard Swedberg

Princeton University Press

Due/Published July 2005, 496 pages, paper

ISBN 0691119589

"By proposing a shift of focus for economic sociology in an important and so far underinvestigated realm, this book represents a significant advancement in the further development of the field. What has been underemphasized in the new economic sociology, the editors rightly claim, is a more macro-oriented investigation of the operation of capitalism as an economic and social system. The high quality contributions in "The Economic Sociology of Capitalism address concerns that have stood at the center of classical works in economic sociology by Weber, Durkheim, Polanyi, and Schumpeter which are still important and will find more attention through this volume."--Jens Beckert, Georg-August-Universitat Gottingen, author of "Beyond the Market

"An excellent contribution to the field. Not only are the editors and authors leading figures in the social sciences, but the individual contributions are always good and sometimes outstanding. Importantly, the book goes well beyond previous collections on economic sociology, which have overrelied on 'oppositional identity' with regard to economics and have been satisfied for too long with poking holes in specific economic arguments rather than developing coherent sociological ones. From the opening through all of the chapters, this book takes economics seriously--a necessary starting point for an effective economic sociology. Its focus on the institutions of capitalism represents an important first step to constructing economic-sociological theory. The chapters are varied in style and subject, which makes the book interesting and substantively rewarding."--Paul Ingram, Columbia University