This is a book about how 21st-century capitalism really works. Modern economics strips away social, historical, and political context from analysis of ‘the economic’, but the economy is far too important to leave exclusively to the economists. Comparative Political Economy (CPE) is a much broader, richer intellectual undertaking which ‘re-embeds’ the analysis of the economic within the social and political realm. This is at the heart of how to think like a political economist.

This text maps the terrain and evolution of CPE, providing the analytical tools to explore the many variants of capitalism, unearthing their roots in competing visions of the desirable distribution of the fruits of growth. Connecting CPE systematically to the subfield of International Political Economy (IPE), the book explains how these visions generate ongoing political struggles over how to regulate and manage capitalism.

This is the perfect introduction to the field for all students of CPE and IPE.

New to this Edition:
- Fully revised and updated throughout to take into account the latest empirical and theoretical developments in this fast-moving field
- A brand New chapter on the political economy of inequality, populism, Trump & Brexit
- New expanded ‘how to use this book’ aimed at student readers
- More coverage of the types of economies covered, to move from an exclusively Western focus to cover developing and emerging global economies