English summary: With three contributions of varying length, Friedrich Lenger exemplifies the fields in which the new series Studien zur Geschichte und Theorie des Kapitalismus (GTK) - opened with this volume - aims to further our understanding of capitalism. At the outset is a review that, in the context of current debates on capitalism, traces the main lines along which economic history research has developed in recent years. In particular, the new perspectives that have emerged as a result of the turning point in global history are highlighted, as are the problems that have remained unsolved. The second contribution is dedicated to Adam Smith who, despite not having experienced the coining of the term capitalism, is nonetheless still a key reference figure in debates. The concluding and lengthiest article analyses the Archiv fur Sozialwissenschaft und Sozialpolitik using the primary sources available. When Edgar Jaffe, Werner Sombart, and Max Weber took over the Archiv's editorship in 1903/04, they defined the exploration of capitalism's cultural significance as the journal's key task. However, even well before Joseph Schumpeter and especially later when Emil Lederer served as editors, the Archiv, the most important social science publication in the twentieth century's first-third, dealt with much broader themes. German description: Friedrich Lenger demonstriert anhand dreier unterschiedlich ausfuhrlicher Beitrage exemplarisch, auf welchen Feldern die mit diesem Band eroffnete Reihe der Studien zur Geschichte und Theorie des Kapitalismus (GTK) unser Verstandnis des Kapitalismus befordern will. Er bietet einen Forschungsbericht, der vor dem Hintergrund der aktuellen Kapitalismusdiskussion die Hauptlinien der wirtschaftsgeschichtlichen Forschungsentwicklung der letzten Jahre nachzeichnet und insbesondere herausarbeitet, welche neuen Perspektiven sich aus der globalgeschichtlichen Wende ergeben haben und welche Probleme ungelost geblieben sind. Eine aus den Quellen gearbeitete wissenschaftsgeschichtliche Abhandlung zum Archiv fur Sozialwissenschaft und Sozialpolitik schliesst den Band ab.