A review of the degrowth literature (561 studies) find that ‘few studies use quantitative or qualitative data…’ and those that do ‘tend to include small samples or focus on non-representative cases’. Finally, ‘large majority (almost 90%) are opinions rather than analysis’.
I agree similarly. Degrowth includes a critique of the consumption economy and overproduction of unnecessary products, but there’s no incentive for capitalists and governments to actually pursue that in a way that makes sense for capitalism, so there’s no concrete path towards degrowth policy until something necessitates it. I do however appreciate the research being done as it provides a vision for socialists in industrialized and post-industrialized countries.
I very much agree. Sustainability has to be the priority for socialist societies, and research into how sustainability can be achieved practically is valuable for that.