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Publicly Available Published by De Gruyter Oldenbourg June 17, 2021

Is More Mittelstand the Answer? Firm Size and the Crisis of Democratic Capitalism

  • Sebastian Kohl EMAIL logo and Timur Ergen
From the journal Analyse & Kritik

Abstract

Corporate concentration is currently being discussed as a core reason for the crisis of democratic capitalism. It is seen as a prime mover for wage stagnation and alienation, economic inequalities and discontent with democracy. A tacit coalition of progressive anti-monopoly critiques and small business promoters considers more deconcentrated corporate structures to be a panacea for the crisis of democratic capitalism, arguing that small firms in competition are better for employment, equality and democracy. This paper offers a brief outline of ideas of the anti-monopoly and small business ideal and critically evaluates whether a more deconcentrated economy may live up to these promises. While we agree that the plea for strengthened antitrust enforcement contains relevant and promising prospects for reform, our analysis concludes on a decidedly critical note. In particular, we caution against romanticized notions of the small capitalist firm.

Published Online: 2021-06-17
Published in Print: 2021-06-01

© 2021 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

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