探讨欧洲各国在战后时期的快速经济成长和当前危机。分析：各国不同的传统（如：法国的公共利益维护观念、自由开放、专制独裁）。政府在经济成长与衰退所扮演的角色。凯因斯主义、指导性计划和国营企业为何以及在何处被采用。其他当代的经济问题（如：新的国际分工、过少生产者、石油震撼）还有应变的策略（如：产业政策、货币主义、保护主义）。
Examines role of European states in postwar period of rapid economic growth and current crisis. Includes analysis of different state traditions ("etatist," liberal, authoritarian); government's role in decline of some economies and rise of others; why and where Keynesianism, indicative planning, and state enterprises were introduced; alternative conceptions of contemporary economic problems (new international division of labor? too few producers? oil shock?); and of policies to deal with them (industrial policy? monetarism? protectionism?).