national differences in political economy

• Political System – the system of government in a nation.
• Two Dimensions of Political System-1.Collectivism and Individualism2. Democratic or Totalitarian
• Collectivism - refers to a political system that stresses the primacy of collective goals over individual goals.
• Two broad camps of Socialism Communist - believed that socialism could be achieved only through violent revolution and totalitarian dictatorship. Social Democrats - committed themselves to achieving socialism by democraticmeans, turning their backs on violent revolution and dictatorship.
• Individualism - refers to a philosophy that an individual should have freedom in his or her economic and political pursuits
• The Two Main Principles of Individualism-1.Emphasis on the importance of guaranteeing individual freedom and self –expression.2. The welfare of society is best served by letting people pursue their own economic self-interest, as opposed to some collective body dictating what is in society’s best interest.
• Democracy - refers to a political system in which government is by the people, exercised either directly or through elected representatives.
• Totalitarianism - a form of government in which one person or political party exercises absolute control over all spheres of human life and prohibits opposing political parties.
• Communist Totalitarianism- Completely socialist is a totalitarian government that pretends they’recommunists. They like to make themselves look like they’re for the ordinary person. But really, it’s a ruse. No totalitarian government care what the populous believe, as long as they support.
• Theocratic Totalitarianism-Totalitarianism is found in states where political power is monopolized by a party, group, or individual that governs according to religious principles. The most common form of theocratic totalitarianism is based on Islam and is exemplified by states such as Iran and Saudi Arabia. These states limit political and religious expression freedom with laws based on Islamic principles.
• Tribal Totalitarianism-Totalitarianism occurs when a political party that represents the interests of a particular tribe (and not always the majority tribe) monopolizes power
• Tight - Wing Totalitarianism- Permits some individual economic freedom but restricts individual political freedom, frequently on the grounds that it would lead to the rise of communism. A common feature of many right-wing dictatorships is an overt hostility to socialistor communist ideas.
• Market Economy - all productive activities are privately owned, as opposed to being owned by the state. The goods and services that a country produces are not planned by anyone. Production is determined by the interaction of supply and demand and signaled to producers through the price system. If demand fora product exceeds supply, prices will rise, signaling producers to produce more. vise versa In this system, consumers are sovereign.
• command economy- all productive activities are owned and controlled by the state. investment in the best interest of the nation
• Mixed Economy - certain sectors of the economy are left to private ownership and free market mechanisms, while other sectors have significant state ownership and government planning. Mixed economies were once common throughout much of the world, although they are becoming much less so
• command economy - a system of economic organization in which the government controls the economy and allocates resources
• Legal Systems - refers to the rules, or laws, that regulate behavior along with the processes by which the laws are enforced and through which grievances are redressed. The legal system of a country is of immense importance to international business. A country's laws regulate business practice, define the manner in which business transactions are to be executed, and set down the rights and obligations of those involved in business transactions. As we shall see, differences in legal systems can affect the attractiveness of a country as an investment site or market.
• three main types of legal systems

  Common Law - based on tradition, precedent, and custom. 2. Civil Law System - based on a detailed set of laws organized into codes. 3. Theocratic Law System - the law is base