Varieties of capitalism en de Nederlandse economie in de periode 1950-2000

Abstract

This article introduces the theory of 'varieties of capitalism' (Hall and Soskice) and its context of the study of comparative capitalism. What is the position of the Dutch economy within the framework of 'varieties of capitalism'? Reviewing five institutional subspheres, I try to outline the institutional complementarities in the Dutch case. This leads to an evaluation of the theory with regard to its use in analysing the Dutch economy. In many aspects the Dutch economy is a 'coordinated market economy'. However, since 1980, increasing globalisation and liberal policies exert a strong influence on the characteristics of the Dutch market economy. Taxonomies like 'varieties of capitalism' contribute to our insight into the effects of different economic institutions. These regulatory mechanisms may be rooted in path-dependent evolution and institutional complementarities, but the theory fails to explain transformations over time.