statism

Statism (French; étatisme) is a term used by political scientists to describe the belief that, for whatever reason, a government should control either economic or social policy or both to some degree.^{[1][2] [3][4]} Statism is effectively the opposite of anarchism.^[4][1][2][3] Statism can take many forms. Minarchists prefer a minimal or night watchman state to protect people from aggression, theft, breach of contract, and fraud with military, police, and courts.^[5][6][7][8] Some may also include fire departments, prisons, and other functions.^[5][6][7][8] Totalitarians prefer a maximum or all encompassing state.^{[9][10][11][12][13]}Limited government, welfare state, and other options make up the middle territory of the scale of statism.^[14][15] Some anarchists use the term statist in a derogatory sense.^[16][17][18]

State, society and individuals

Some statist analyses use a dichotomy between state and society, viewing the state as a homogeneous institution capable of using political power to force policy on a passive or resisting society. Such an analysis depends on an elitist theory of power rather than a pluralist theory of power; that power is exercised by individuals and competing organisations within society.^[19]

Right-wing authoritarianism, on the other hand, views a strong, authoritative state as required to legislate or enforce traditional morality and cultural practices. The ideology of statism espoused by fascism holds that sovereignty is not vested in the people but in the nation state, and that all individuals and associations exist only to enhance the power, prestige and well-being of the state. It repudiates individualism and exalts the nation as an organic body headed by the Supreme Leader and nurtured by unity, force, and discipline.^{[citation needed]} Fascism and some forms of corporatism extol the moral position that the corporate group, usually the state, is greater than the sum of its parts and that individuals have a moral obligation to serve the state.^{[citation needed]}

Economic statism

Economic statism promotes the view that the state has a major and legitimate role in directing the economy, either directly through state-owned enterprises and other types of machinery of government, or indirectly through economic planning.^[20] The term statism is sometimes used to refer to state capitalism or highly-regulated market economies with large amounts of government intervention, regulation or public ownership over industry. It is also used to refer to state socialism or co-operative economic systems that rely upon state ownership as a means of running industry.^{[citation needed]} Economic interventionism asserts that the state has a legitimate or necessary role within the framework of a capitalist economy by correcting market failures, promoting economic growth and/or low levels of unemployment.^{[citation needed]} State socialism refers to any socialist political movement that advocates the use of the state apparatus as a strategy for building a socialist society (or for achieving a socialist revolution), either through nationalization or through a workers' state based on workers' councils.^{[citation needed]}

References

See also