"The author, one of Germany's leading economic historians, analyzes the special features of the German path to the New Economy as it faces the American challenge. He paints a picture of Germany Inc. and looks at the durability of some of its structures and the mentalities that undergird it. He sees a "culture clash" and argues against an underestimation of the dynamics of the German industrial system. A book for all interested in comparative economics and those who have been inclined to dismiss the German Model as outmoded and weak."--BOOK JACKET.

I A living past

1 Beyond "the end of history" 9

2 The splendor and misery of Rhine capitalism 16

II The German empire - hothouse of postindustrial institutions

1 From liberalism to the coordinated production regime 25

2 Patterns of socialization compared : the economies of Germany and Great Britain 30

3 Interest intermediation between societal and state corporatism 46

III The German production regime

1 The production regime of the coordinated market economy 77

2 The American challenge 87

3 Codetermination : the German response to the agency problem 107

4 Social market economy : production-related design of the organization and rules of the economy 114

IV The German road to the twenty-first century

1 Many roads lead to Rome 127

2 Anachronisms of the "economic miracle" 133

3 Strengths and weaknesses of the German production regime 137