Kindred strangers : the uneasy relationship between politics and business in America / David Vogel.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

The study of business and politics -- Why businessmen distrust their state : the political consciousness of American corporate executives -- Cooperative regulation : environmental protection in Great Britain -- The globalization of business ethics : why America remains distinctive -- Government-industry relations in the United States : an overview -- The public-interest movement and the American reform tradition -- Lobbying the corporation : citizen challenges to business authority -- The ethical roots of business ethics -- When consumers oppose consumer protection : the politics of regulatory backlash -- Political science and the study of corporate power : a dissent from the new conventional wisdom -- The power of business in America : a reappraisal -- The power of business in capitalist societies : a comparative perspective -- A case study of clear air legislation, 1967-1981.

Notwithstanding the myriad forms of government assistance to American business, the relationship of business to politics in the United States remains a highly antagonistic one, characterized by substantial mutual distrust. This adversarial relationship is both reflected and reinforced not only in America's unique legalistic and confrontational style of regulation, the political strategies of the public interest movement, the American approach to American industrial policy, and the distinctive way Americans think about the subject of business ethics. This volume brings together more than two decades of scholarship on business and politics by one of the leading authorities on this subject.

These essays also explore a number of critical contemporary issues, including the ongoing debate over the scope and extent of business power in America, the growth of shareholder protests and consumer boycotts, the changing politics of consumer and environmental regulation, and the emergence of both public and business interest in business ethics. In addition, they place the contemporary dynamics of American business-governmental relations in both a historical and comparative context. Finally, these essays demonstrate the importance of integrating the study of business by political scientists with the study of politics by students of management.