An innovator in contemporary thought on economic and political development looks here at decline rather than growth. Albert O. Hirschman makes a basic distinction between alternative ways of reacting to deterioration in business firms and, in general, to dissatisfaction with organizations: one, "exit," is for the member to quit the organization or for the customer to switch to the competing product, and the other, "voice," is for members or customers to agitate and exert influence for change "from within." The efficiency of the competitive mechanism, with its total reliance on exit, is questioned for certain important situations. As exit often undercuts voice while being unable to counteract decline, loyalty is seen in the function of retarding exit and of permitting voice to play its proper role.
The interplay of the three concepts turns out to illuminate a wide range of economic, social, and political phenomena. As the author states in the preface, "having found my own unifying way of looking at issues as diverse as competition and the two-party system, divorce and the American character, black power and the failure of 'unhappy' top officials to resign over Vietnam, I decided to let myself go a little."
Chris Hayes is a political commentator and author.
This book is a classic for a reason, and also happens to provide really useful framework for thinking about the GOP under Trump
Hari Kunzru is a novelist.
TIL that the political scientist Albert O. Hirschman (Exit Voice and Loyalty) worked with Varian Fry helping people escape occupied Europe. Those are the stakes of Exit, not feeling sad about having to pay tax.
Representative, UT HD 23, LDS, feminist. Persist, overcome, & progress!
This is a concise restatement of the Hiding Hand Principle formulated by Albert Hirschman. Hirschman was one of the great economists of the 20th century and wrote one of my favorite books, "Exit, Voice, and Loyalty." Want to know more? Google "hiding hand principle." https://t.co/6MEYMz5eud