A Research Agenda for Neoliberalism

by Kean Birch

Elgar Research Agendas outline the future of research in a given area. Leading scholars are given the space to explore their subject in provocative ways, and map out the potential directions of travel. They are relevant but also visionary. At a time when neoliberalism has become an accepted term in public debate to refer to the current state of modern societies and their political economies, Kean Birch critically analyses the conflicting theories that shape our understanding of 'neoliberalism'. With an ever-expanding variety of perspectives on the concept of neoliberalism, it is increasingly difficult to identify any commonalities. This book explores how different people understand neoliberalism, and the contradictions in thinking of neoliberalism as a market-based ethic, project, or order. Detailing the intellectual history of 'neoliberal' thought, the variety of critical approaches and the many analytical ambiguities, Kean Birch presents a new way to conceptualize contemporary political economy and offers potential avenues for future research through a judicious exploration of 'neoliberal' practices, processes, and institutions. This work will be an essential resource for undergraduate and postgraduate students, scholars, and researchers to critically assess the concept of neoliberalism across many disciplines. The book will also serve as a general introduction to a wider audience interested in the term 'neoliberalism', its potential pitfalls, and its contested future.

208 pages, Hardcover

Published September 28, 2017

About the author

Kean Birch is Associate Professor in the Department of Geography at York University, Toronto.

Reviews

[Joeji · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this book really frustrating - while filled with some good insights and critiques of the reigning scholarship on neoliberalism, Birch tends to just completely dismiss large bodies of work, before he goes in another direction. It feels like he is critiquing folks based on what he wants them to do, rather than the actual substance of their arguments. In particular, I found Chap 7 extremely annoying. For some reason Birch seems to take Foucault and post-structural ideas of the entrepreneur literally, saying that these analyses are off because there aren't more entrepreneurs or people starting businesses. This is super facile and really misrepresents the point of a lot of post-structuralist work.