ABSTRACT
From all that has been said here, what might we conclude about the world of services, or perhaps more appropriately, Service Worlds? Any attempt to extrapolate conclusions from such a diverse set of issues and perspectives discussed in this book is bound to leave itself open to the charge of oversimplification. Nonetheless, it is evident that several themes have recurred which highlight the central role of services in the contemporary world economy. These serve only as reminders of the bewildering array of topics that confronts students of services and should not be interpreted as an attempt at a comprehensive sketch. Some of the themes are little more than refutations of longstanding, erroneous stereotypes about services, which have been misunderstood and underestimated ever since Adam Smith in the eighteenth century. Others are attempts to grapple with the complexities of contemporary capitalism, within which services play a central and constitutive role.
