This volume investigates the core question of how the Regulation School of economic thought explains the stability and crisis of capitalist systems through institutional analysis. Robert Boyer and Yves Saillard, both prominent scholars in the field of institutional economics, compile a comprehensive overview of the Regulation approach. They argue that capitalist development is not governed by universal laws but by historically specific institutional forms that regulate economic activity over time. The text provides a rigorous framework for understanding the transition from Fordist regimes to contemporary globalized economic structures.

Experts recognize this work as a foundational text for students and researchers interested in heterodox economics and institutional theory. Readers frequently note the academic density of the prose, which serves as a comprehensive reference for the evolution of Regulation Theory.