Differences between countries depend on their political, economic, and legal systems. A country’s political system refers to the government in a nation and can prioritize either society’s needs or the individual’s interests. The political systems can be characterized by collectivism against individualism and totalitarianism against democratism. Furthermore, the economic systems vary based on the political systems. If a country emphasizes individual goals over collective, it is likely to focus on a market economy with privately-owned enterprises. On the other hand, a command economy will be prevalent in an area where the state manages companies, concentrating on the good of society. However, some countries choose mixed economies and have the government control several economic sectors, while private ownership supervises others. As politics and economics shape processes within a country, the legal system formulates rules and regulates behavior. A nation’s legal traditions can be represented by common, civil, and theoretic laws, valuing customs, codes, or religions. While the described systems are different, they are also interconnected within specific regions.
A country’s political, economic, and legal systems form its political economy. The systems can impact a nation’s economical well-being by interacting with and influencing each other. Therefore, they present two implications for management practice in the political economy. Together, the systems raise certain ethical issues such as corruption and bribes or denial of basic human rights in countries with totalitarian governments. Moreover, the characterization of a nation’s primal systems affects its image as an investment or market site. The political economy is likely to fail if it lacks democracy, does not respect the law, and is restricted by the government. Management practices need to be associated with the advantageous cooperation of political, economic, and legal systems to attract businesses.