American Economic Development Since 1945

Book excerpt: This clearly-written book provides an historical analysis of postwar economic development in the US, helping the reader to understand the nation's current economic position. Samuel Rosenberg investigates three postwar phases: the creation of an institutional framework setting the stage for prosperity in the US after World War II, the forces undermining this institutional framework and the resulting stagflation of the 1970s, and the recreation of a new institutional structure in the 1980s. Basic economic concepts are introduced and explained throughout and specific attention is paid to macroeconomic policy, industrial relations, the role of the US in the world economy, social and labor policy, the structure of the labor force, and the distribution of income by race and gender.