Abstract

The article focuses on the book "The New Industrial State," written by John Kenneth Galbraith. One general impression conveyed by this book is that the large industrial corporation now dominates not only the economy but also the polity and society of the U.S. According to the author this 412-page book does not provide a single comprehensive view of modern economic life and of the changes that are shaping it. It provides a distorted description of the structure and operation of one segment of the U.S. economy. Galbraith accepted responsibility for carrying out an infinitely difficult task, pointed to the tentative nature of many of his observations and identified issues requiring further investigation before judgments could be expressed. Indeed, publication of a book purveying so much error and so lacking in scientific scholarship points to the need for much more intensive research into U.S. business policies. One of the great foundations could well spend some money in establishing a center for the study of corporate policy in a university, strong in business administration and economics.