Overview

Why have some countries been able to escape the usual dead end of international development efforts and build explosively growing capitalist economies? Based on years of fieldwork, this book provides a detailed account of the first generation of entrepreneurs in Vietnam in comparison to those in other transition countries. Focusing on the emergence of private land development firms in Ho Chi Minh City, the author shows how within seven years the private sector produced the majority of all new houses in the real estate market. This book demonstrates that capitalist entrepreneurialism was not the result of state initiative, properly incentivized policies, or individual personality traits. Rather, a society-wide reconstruction of cognitive paradigms enabled entrepreneurs to emerge and transformed Vietnam from a poor, centrally planned economy to one of the fastest growing, market economies in the world.

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9780195369397

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Reviews

This is an excellent study of a very important socio-economic phenomenon that for a long time has been waiting for its author: the rocket-like economic growth of Vietnam since about a decade. Responding to the call by economists such as Douglass North, the author suggests that cognition--more precisely, social cognition--plays a key role in explaining why countries that are poor can turn around and become economically successful. The reader will not only enjoy the elegant argument but also the fine ethnographic case study of entrepreneurs, active in the real estate industry in Ho Chi Minh City. --Richard Swedberg, Cornell University<br> Learning to be Capitalists explores the role of social cognition in the process of development. This is a thought-provoking work on a cutting edge issue in institutional analysis, economic development and sociology. It provides important insights into the processes of development and transition. --Avner Greif, The Bowman Family Professor in Humanities and Sciences, Department of Economics, Stanford University<br> Entrepreneurship is a pillar of market economy. Kim's book is an original study of how entrepreneurs emerged and responded to market opportunities in the process of transition from Vietnam's socialist planning economy to a market economy. --Justin Lin, Chief Economist, World Bank<br> This research was from a case study of HCMC's Real Estate Market establishment and penetrated into Vietnam's economic situation. I was so surprised with Annette Kim's careful interview technique and large amount of field work The book is useful for policymakers and economic researchers due to the practical information and the theories that itcontains. --Ton Gia Huyen, former Director, Vietnam General Department of Land Administration<br> Annette Kim has produced a fascinating study of how entrepreneurs really operated in the complex economy and polity of Vietnam during its transition from a centrally planned to a market economy. Her results, based on close personal observation over a long period, will be of interest not only to those interested in Vietnam or the industry she studies (real estate), but to anyone interested in how entrepreneurs could still thrive despite being in a world with few formal rules enforceable by an established legal system. --Dwight H. Perkins, Harvard University<br> Private entrepreneurship takes off exponentially in a socialist economy with weak institutions and fragile legal order. This is a story that would qualify for most economists as a fairy tale. Yet it is Vietnam's reality. Annette Kim helps us make sense of this reality through close observation of how Vietnamese entrepreneurs operate and navigate their choppy waters. --Dani Rodrik, Harvard University<br>

<br> This is an excellent study of a very important socio-economic phenomenon that for a long time has been waiting for its author: the rocket-like economic growth of Vietnam since about a decade. Responding to the call by economists such as Douglass North, the author suggests that cognition--more precisely, social cognition--plays a key role in explaining why countries that are poor can turn around and become economically successful. The reader will not only enjoy the elegant argument but also the fine ethnographic case study of entrepreneurs, active in the real estate industry in Ho Chi Minh City. --Richard Swedberg, Cornell University<br> Learning to be Capitalists explores the role of social cognition in the process of development. This is a thought-provoking work on a cutting edge issue in institutional analysis, economic development and sociology. It provides important insights into the processes of development and transition. --Avner Greif, The Bowman Family Professor in Humanit

Author Information

Annette M. Kim is Ford International Career Development Professor of International Urban Development at M.I.T.'s Department of Urban Studies and Planning. She teaches courses on property rights, public finance, housing, and project appraisal in developing countries.

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