Introduction

In this book, we focus on financial market actors in developing states and show how critical they are in motivating government responses to IMF conditions and programs. We first briefly define the key concepts in this book. We then explain why exploring the link between the IMF and financial crises as well as the political effects of these crises under IMF-mandated programs is substantively important. The third section discusses the large and growing body of research on international institutions (including the IMF), financial crises in developing states and their impact, and the politics of state-perpetrated repression relevant for addressing the questions raised in this book. We then discuss how our book contributes to various distinct areas of research, including the literatures listed above. The fourth section of this chapter briefly summarizes the comprehensive theoretical framework developed in this book, while the fifth section presents the book’s empirical research design. The chapter ends with an outline of our book.