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The SCP Paradigm Revisited: What Structuralism Really Contributed to U.S. Antitrust?

Author

Listed:
  • Patrice Bougette

    (UniCA - Université Côte d'Azur, GREDEG - Groupe de Recherche en Droit, Economie et Gestion - UNS - Université Nice Sophia Antipolis (1965 - 2019) - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - UniCA - Université Côte d'Azur)

  • Frédéric Marty

    (GREDEG - Groupe de Recherche en Droit, Economie et Gestion - UNS - Université Nice Sophia Antipolis (1965 - 2019) - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - UniCA - Université Côte d'Azur, OFCE - Observatoire français des conjonctures économiques (Sciences Po) - Sciences Po - Sciences Po, CIRANO - Centre interuniversitaire de recherche en analyse des organisations [Montréal, Canada] = Center for Interuniversity Research and Analysis on Organizations [Montréal, Canada])

Abstract

This article examines the Structure-Conduct-Performance (SCP) paradigm that dominated U.S. antitrust policy until the 1970s, before being displaced by the Chicago School and, from the 1980s onwards, by Post-Chicago analysis, i.e., modern industrial organization. Long portrayed as indifferent to firms' conduct and to economic efficiency, structuralism has been subject to a persistent "black legend." This contribution reassesses that critique by examining: (i) the evolution of structuralism between the 1940s and the 1970s; (ii) the influence of a deconcentrationist perspective embedded in a particular legal interpretation of U.S. antitrust rules; (iii) the implications of the digital economy for contemporary analyses of market structures; and (iv) the SCP paradigm's legacy in Neo-Brandeisian and conservative antitrust thought.

Suggested Citation

  • Patrice Bougette & Frédéric Marty, 2026. "The SCP Paradigm Revisited: What Structuralism Really Contributed to U.S. Antitrust?," Sciences Po Economics Publications (main) halshs-05499262, HAL.
    • Handle: RePEc:hal:spmain:halshs-05499262
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