Political conflict and the social structure of accumulation: The case of South African apartheid

This paper explores the institutional factors behind the crisis of capital accumulation in South Africa in the 1970s and 1980s. Estimations show that political instability accounted for most of the fall in the rate of accumulation, independent of distributive outcomes, such as the level of profitability. Contrary to prior criticisms, these results provide empirical support for a social structure of accumulation (SSA) interpretation of the performance of the South African economy.