Incentives and Institutions: The Transition to a Market Economy in Russia. By Serguey Braguinsky and Grigory Yavlinsky. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2000. 282p. $39.50.

Abstract

After a decade of market reforms, it is obvious to most observers that something has gone wrong in Russia. Some economic indicators suggest modest successes in instituting a market economy, but most of the evidence is clear that the economic and social crisis has far exceeded what might be expected in terms of a "transformation recession." Industrial and agricultural output is down substantially, capital renewal is not keeping pace with the retirement of old machinery, the nation is deindustrializing, real living standards have plum- meted, and investment capital is fleeing the country. The authors of this book conclude that "the Russian privatization program was nothing but a grandiose failure" (p. 6).