The Contradictions of Socialist Economies: A Marxian Interpretation

Abstract

Public ownership of the means of production (in its forms of state, co-operative and local ownership) and macro-economic planning are the fundamental features of socialist economies of Marxist- Leninist inspiration. The known variants of this type of economy differ mainly in the extent and mix of public ownership, the degree of central control and its extension beyond the macro-economic sphere, the actual techniques of management and planning. These economies differ from both 'associationist' (or 'self-management') socialism of Yugoslavian type where there is no planning, and social democracy of Scandinavian type where private ownership and enterprise continue to dominate.