The Theoretical Bases of the Scandinavian Economic Model: the Stockholm School of Economics and the Specialisation of the Capitalist System

The article analyses the theoretical bases of the Scandinavian economic model, that in recent decades has achieved successes in constructing a society of general wellbeing and insignificant social inequality against the background of a growing world gap between rich and poor. The Northern European economic model is based on the heritage and elaborations of the Stockholm school of economics, one of whose representatives, Gunnar Myrdal, was awarded the Nobel Prize for Economics in 1974. This theoretical
trend in many ways anticipated the popular economic ideas of the twentieth century. It also formulated the concept of the “home for the peoples”, on which the Swedish economic miracle was based. Within the context of this tendency, conclusions were drawn on the need for state and social influence (the influence of non-market methods of economic management). Further, it is possible to rank the countries of the developed capitalist world on the basis of the degree to which they have socialised the capitalist system. In this classification the Scandinavian countries hold leading positions, and are prime examples of countries where capitalism has undergone a high level of socialisation. At the same time, they have effectively functioning private, state and social mechanisms of support for the economic system. The need to socialise capitalism is also examined by adherents of the post-Soviet school of critical Marxism. As the outcome of his study, the author of this article presents a comparative analysis of these two currents in economics.