Was Market Socialism Ever a Viable Alternative Development Model?

This chapter presents an overview of theoretical and policy-induced practical attempts to remedy the shortcomings of a command economy. These happened on the ground with the introduction of market elements into those systems. The initiatives were often bold, especially by contemporary ideological standards, without, however, considering crossover to a real market economy based on private property, competition, and the integration of trade and finances into the global economy. In light of the successful Chinese and Vietnamese experiments with market reforms in the post-1978 period, however, these attempts deserve more academic attention. Why did this experiment succeed in Asia and fail in Europe? This chapter offers five theses and turns to economic theory at the end to answer this question.