Kornai, Janos

economist

Mr. Kornai is a professor emeritus of Harvard University, a leading emeritus researcher of the Collegium Budapest Institute for Advanced Study, and a research professor of the Central European University. He has received state awards from several countries and holds various titles. The main field of his scientific endeavours was the analysis of socialist systems. He worked out the theory of the shortage economy and the theory of soft budget restrictions; he conducted research in the general theory of equilibrium and mathematical modelling. Since the 1990s, his scientific activity has been focused on the problems of the post-socialist economic transition, the welfare state, the reform of health care systems, the transformation of institutions, the stabilisation programs of transitional economies, and economic policy. His books and essays have been translated into a number of languages. His latest book, The Strength of Thought: An Irregular Autobiography has been just published in Hungarian; its English and Japanese editions are in progress.

The Great Transition of Central-Eastern Europe: Successes and Disappointments