The book examines the political social and economic history of three different nations sweden japan and the united states and explains how and why these countries have evolved along such different trajectories over the past century bringing together social and economic history institutionalism and evolutionary theory steinmo thus provides a comprehensive explanation for differing responses to globalization as well as a new way of analyzing institutional and social change. The evolution of modern states sweden japan and the united states by sven steinmo new york cambridge university press 2010 288p 10000 cloth 3100 paper. The book examines the political social and economic history of three different nations sweden japan and the united states and explains how and why these countries have evolved along such different trajectories over the past century bringing together social and economic history institutionalism and evolutionary theory steinmo thus provides a comprehensive explanation for differing responses to globalization as well as a new way of analyzing institutional and social change. The evolution of modern states sweden japan and the united states the evolution ofmodernstatesbegins with a simple question why do rich capitalist democracies respond so differently to the common pres sures they face in the early twenty first century drawing on insights from evolutionary theory sven steinmo challenges the common equi librium view ofpolitics andeconomicsandarguesthat . 11 the political economies of sweden japan and the united states page 27 21 sweden social and economic data and world ranking 31 22 distribution of income and benefits minus taxes in sweden 2007 36 23 the redistributive effects of flat taxes and universal benefits 38 24 level of fiscal churning in selected industrial countries 39 25 union density and collective bargaining 43 26