Work

Systemic cycles of accumulation and chaos in the world capitalist system: a missing link

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: We re-examine the systemic cycles of accumulation (SCA) of Arrighi (2010) and Arrighi and Silver (1999) which provide a framework for the analysis of the cyclical patterns of geographical expansion of trade and production and the related shifts of hegemonic power within the world capitalist system. Within the SCA framework, the last stage of a hegemonic cycle is characterized by what is called ‘systemic chaos’. However, the drivers of these dynamics have not been explicitly analyzed. This article fills this gap by providing a link between the accumulation process and systemic chaos. Introducing the logistic map into the SCA analysis, our approach provides the missing detailed understanding of how systemic chaos is an outcome of the contradictory socioeconomic dynamics of capital accumulation itself while being based on the key insights of the SCA framework of hegemonic cycles.

Source: Socio-Economic Review

DOI: 10.1093/ser/mwae007

Authors: Giorgos Galanis, Christian Koutny, Isabella Weber

Institutions: Queen Mary University of London, Goldsmiths University of London, University of Massachusetts Amherst

Language: English

Topic: World Systems and Global Transformations

Subfield: Political Science and International Relations

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,784

Funder: Johns Hopkins University