Towards a New Political Economy of Turkish Capitalism: Three Worlds

Political economists investigating Turkey's turbulent path in recent years predominantly work from within three different characterizations of Turkish capitalism: authoritarian neoliberalism, crony capitalism, and state capitalism. This article critically reviews these competing visions and identifies directions for future research. I argue that, fundamental differences aside, these approaches together illustrate the indispensability of a political economy perspective for comprehending Turkey's current predicament, in particular its authoritarian turn and ongoing systemic crisis. Yet meeting the potential of this research program also requires resisting rigid macro conceptualizations and aiming instead for empirically rich analyses of nuts-and-bolts phenomena such as changes in the class map, sectoral regimes, and challenges of development, with a view to identifying feasible strategies of renewal post-AKP.

Automated summary

This article critically reviews the different characterizations of Turkish capitalism and identifies directions for future research. The author argues that a political economy perspective is essential for understanding Turkey's current predicament and suggests focusing on empirical analyses of specific phenomena to find feasible strategies for renewal.