Routledge The Participatory Economy: Adding Realism to Democratic Planning (Routledge Frontiers of Political Economy)

This book explores the participatory economy model (parecon) as a democratic alternative to capitalism and central planning. Written from an accounting perspective, it addresses two critical challenges in implementing this theoretical framework: product categorisation and contextualising annual planning. It outlines a comprehensive product catalogue framework by analysing how consumers and producers influence product categorisation, design, and production processes across nine distinct product types, which collectively shape annual planning proposals, costing, and pricing mechanisms. Further, the book positions the contextualisation of annual planning clearly and concretely within the framework of the ongoing and complex relations existing in an open, fair and democratic modern economy. It identifies the most important coordination tasks and support functions necessary in a participatory economy for the formal annual planning procedure and the implementation of a fair and efficient agreed annual plan. Overall, the author proposes possible and viable ways to bridge the gap between abstract economic theory and the present reality, illuminating complex issues and demonstrating how a participatory economy can function efficiently without markets or private ownership. The work emphasises democratic decision-making, equitable income distribution, and self-management while providing detailed frameworks for price formation, production coordination, and investment planning in a complex modern economy. As such, it will appeal to researchers, scholars and students of heterodox economics, political economy, and socialist theory, as well as activists and practitioners interested in alternative economic systems.