Corporatism

Historically, corporatism or corporativism (Italian corporativismo) is a political system in which legislative power is given to corporations that represent economic, industrial and professional groups. Unlike pluralism, in which many groups must compete for control of the state, in corporatism, certain unelected bodies take a critical role in the decision-making process. A corporatist state

Related Topics:
Political system - Corporations - Pluralism

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

... does not simply license the existence of organised interest groups but incorporates them into its own centralised hierarchical system of regulation. In doing so, the state simultaneously recognises its dependence upon these associations and seeks to use them as an instrument in the pursuit and legitimation of its policies.http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3657/is_200306/ai_n9301506/print

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The word "corporatism" is derived from the Latin word for body, corpus. This original meaning was not connected with the specific notion of a business corporation, but rather a general reference to any incorporated body. Its usage reflects medieval European concepts of a whole society in which the various components each play a part in the life of the society, just as the various parts of the body serve specific roles in the life of a body. According to various theorists, corporatism was an attempt to create a "modern" version of feudalism by merging the "corporate" interests with those of the state. (Also see neofeudalism.)

Related Topics:
Latin - Business - Neofeudalism

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Political scientists may also use the term corporatism to describe a practice whereby an authoritarian state, through the process of licensing and regulating officially-incorporated social, religious, economic, or popular organizations, effectively co-opts their leadership or circumscribes their ability to challenge state authority by establishing the state as the source of their legitimacy. This usage is particularly common in the area of East Asia studies, and is sometimes also referred to as state corporatism.

Related Topics:
Political scientists - Authoritarian - State - Licensing - Incorporated - Legitimacy - East Asia

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Modern popular usage of the term is more pejorative, emphasizing the role of business corporations in government decision-making at the expense of the public. The power of business to affect government legislation through lobbying and other avenues of influence in order to promote their interests is usually seen as detrimental to those of the public. In this respect, corporatism may be characterized as an extreme form of regulatory capture, and is also termed corporatocracy. If there is substantial military-corporate collaboration it is often called militarism or the military-industrial complex.

Related Topics:
Business - Lobbying - Regulatory capture - Corporatocracy - Military-industrial complex

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Some modern political scientists and sociologists use the term neo-corporatism to describe a process of bargaining between labor, capital, and government identified as occurring in some small, open economies (particularly in Europe) as a means of distinguishing their observations from popular perjorative usage and to highlight ties to classical theories.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~