I have been working (in my head) on a wonkish, fully cited, post on the fundamental fallacy embedded at the basis of neo-classical econ. But I am still engaged on reading the ur-texts (hint Karl Polanyi and a revisit to E.P. Thompson) so instead will just throw out my thesis and let the thoughtful critics (and jackals) gnaw on it.…Call for input.
My comments in the ensuing discussion.
Angry Bear
Homo Oeconomicus vs Homo Socialis: The Anthropology of Neo-Classical Econ
Bruce Webb
4 comments:
Thank you Tom! Interesting articles of highest quality as always!! I just found two articles from NLR
by two heavy old dudes,now both retired professors but still goin strong, that you might find interesting:
Wolfgang Streeck: Why the Euro Divides Europe
"A landmark critique of Smithian notions of money as neutral medium of exchange, naturalized in social theory from Parsons to Habermas. Arguing instead for Weber’s concept of money as weapon in the market struggle, Wolfgang Streeck reveals how the single currency has transformed Europe’s qualitative horizontal diversity into quantitative vertical inequality."
http://newleftreview.org/II/95/wolfgang-streeck-why-the-euro-divides-europe
Perry Anderson,
'Incommensurate Russia'
"With the collisions over Ukraine, the contradictions in Russia’s relations with the West have been sharpened by sanctions and economic crisis. Perry Anderson on the spectre of Great Power status that still informs the post-multinational nation—and why, despite all the Kremlin’s attempts at integration with the US–EU, the country remains indigestible."
http://newleftreview.org/II/94/perry-anderson-incommensurate-russia
All the best! Jan
Thanks, Jan.
"Arguing instead for Weber’s concept of money as weapon in the market struggle, Wolfgang Streeck reveals how the single currency has transformed Europe’s qualitative horizontal diversity into quantitative vertical inequality."
Exactly, as Yanis and Syriza found out the hard way. They should have just looked at the experience of the colonial world and then then the emerging nations. Now it coming home to roost.
"despite all the Kremlin’s attempts at integration with the US–EU, the country remains indigestible."
Right. Russia in the elephant in the room economically and politically. Impossible for Western and Central Europe to digest without loosing control. There is also the issue of the Slavic world united by Orthodoxy in contrast to the secular European nations coming from a Roman Catholic tradition.
OK, instead of the "Rational Man" nonsense, how about if we say:
"People do what seems to be the thing to do at the time."
From my point of view, that one works without a doubt.
How about, people do what they are motivated to do at the time for whatever reasons or based on whatever other factors are also operative. Motivation is clearly heavily influence by sentiment —sensibility and sensitivity — emotion as well conscience. Adam Smith actually preceded Wealth of Nations with Theory of Moral Sentiments, for example. Even though he was 18th century he was more a Humean in this regard than a rationalist. In Freudian terms, motivation is influenced not only by ego, but also by id and superego, which means that many of the factors influencing motivation operate subliminally.
Motivation is complex. Economics is not the only field that is concerned with it. It's basically a subject of study of psychology and sociology, and it is also studied in management as well as in philosophy as action theory, ethics, and social and political philosophy. While it is individual it is also socially determined.
Economics assumes for tractability that human action is understood when it is not, and that human act "rationally" when they cannot owing to hardwiring and an operating system whose assembly language is imprinted in infancy and very early childhood.
Assuming homogeneity is a gross oversimplification that overlooks differences of social class, for example, as well as cultural ad institutional factors that influence motivation and choice. Then there are individual factors that are not yet well understood, such as what accounts for difference in twins, for instance.
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