Socialism after Hayek reinvigorates the socialist quest for class justice by rendering it compatible with the social and economic theories of F. A. Hayek. Theodore A. Burczak advances a new vision of socialism that avoids Hayek's criticisms of centrally planned socialism while adhering to a socialist conception of distributive justice and Marx's notion of freely associated labor. In contrast to the socialist models of John Roemer, Michael Albert, and Robin Hahnel, Burczak envisions a "free market socialism" in which privately owned firms are run democratically by workers, and governments engage in ongoing redistributions of wealth to support human development, yet markets are otherwise unregulated.

"Burczakian socialism = (Hayek + Nussbaum + Sen + Ackerman + Resnick and Wolff) = Ellerman = legal-economic democracy. Brilliant! Burczak takes Hayek, his critics, and other social theorists and produces the foundations of a legal-economic order in which the concerns of most current thinkers are provided for. It is a deep, sustained, and brilliant achievement."
—Warren J. Samuels, Professor Emeritus, Economics Department, Michigan State University; former President of the History of Economics Society and the Association for Social Economics; coeditor of the Journal of Income Distribution; and author of over 40 books

"Theodore A. Burczak's Socialism after Hayek is a thoroughly researched and thoughtful examination not only of the ideological debate that framed the twentieth century, but of Hayek's intellectual framework. Burczak hopes for an economic framework that is both humanistic in its approach and humanitarian in its concern while being grounded in good reasons. The book should be on the reading list of every comparative political economist and in particular anyone who wants to take Hayek seriously, including those who would like to push Hayek's classical liberal politics toward the left in the twenty-first century. Burczak has made an outstanding contribution to the fields of political and economic thought and to Hayek studies in particular."
—Peter J. Boettke, Professor and Director of Graduate Studies, Department of Economics, George Mason University, Fairfax

"An advance well beyond the great 'socialist calculation debate.' Socialism after Hayek is both novel and challenging to contemporary Hayekian scholars. Burczak is the only scholar working in the post-Marxist tradition that thoroughly understands and appreciates the Hayekian critique of socialism. He is on his way to answering many of our long-held objections."
—Dave Prychitko, Department of Economics, Northern Michigan University

"One does not have to agree with all of Burczak's arguments to accept that he has developed a bold, creative and challenging response to the powerful Hayekian critique of socialism. Burczak wisely rejects the agoraphobia—literally the fear of markets—of many socialists, and focuses instead on the socialist goal of the abolition of exploitation. If this important book is read by both socialists and Hayekians, then there is a chance that debates on the viability of socialism may avoid some past pitfalls."
—Geoffrey M. Hodgson, University of Hertfordshire, UK

"Provocative and expansive. An excellent book that deals in depth with the relevant literature, incorporating it into a new analysis of the question of socialism. . . . The scholarship is superior: Burczak integrates the works of Hayek and Marx to develop a new theory of justice and to provide a new way to think through the problems of a socialist economy."
—Stephen Cullenberg, Department of Economics, University of California, Riverside

"A brilliant, fair-minded approach to Marx, Hayek, Sen, and Nussbaum yields a needed socialist vision for the twenty-first century."
—Stephen Resnick, Department of Economics, University of Massachusetts

Theodore A. Burczak is Associate Professor of Economics at Denison University.

On the Web

Theodore Burczak's website