Developmental states in transition: adapting, dismantling, innovating, not ‘normalizing’

Capitalist diversity is doomed in a global economy and the coming century will see ever more countries adapting their institutions to resemble more closely the Anglo-American model. Or so many believe. But to what extent have the ideological and institutional fundamentals of East Asian developmental states been eroded and in what measure is change being driven by an external-economic logic? Five propositions are developed in the light of the catch-up process, the sources and outcomes of financial liberalization, the Asian financial crisis, and Japan's bank crisis. The article concludes that the East Asian experience offers little comfort to those who expect that liberalization will lead to ‘normalization’.