1st Edition

How Social Forces Impact the Economy

Edited By Steven Pressman Copyright 2020
    244 Pages 22 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    244 Pages 22 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    Social forces are important determinants of how people behave, how economies work at the macroeconomic level, and the effectiveness of economic policies. However, this dimension is generally overlooked in mainstream economics. How Social Forces Impact the Economy demonstrates that a broader conception of social economics provides for a better understanding of how economies work as a whole.

    This book argues that adopting a truly social approach to economics opens the door to studying how people form preferences, and how they learn by taking cues from others about how to behave and what to consume. Each chapter contributor works to highlight the breadth of new insights and possibilities that emerge from a fuller understanding of social economics. Part I focuses on microeconomics, bringing individual behaviors and individual entrepreneurs into a more social context. Part II focuses on macroeconomic topics, such as how money and quasi-monies (like Bitcoins) are social, how money developed as a social institution, and how social forces matter for economic development. Finally, Part III looks at the consequences of considering social factors when it comes to policy: environmental policy, industrial policy, and policies promoting greater equality.

    This book is invaluable reading to anyone interested in the relationship between economics and sociology, how social forces affect policy effectiveness, human behavior, and the overall economy.

    (1) Introduction: Putting the Social Back into Economics by Steven Pressman

    Part I- Individual Behavior

    (2) Becker's Two Models of Social Interaction by Ross Tippit

    (3) Greed, Need and Solidarity: The Socialization of Homo Economicus by Roger D. Johnson

    (4) The Burden of Knowledge and Schumpeter’s Innovation by Austin Landini

    Part II- Macroeconomics and Money

    (5) Money as Social Institution: Its Historical Emergence and Political Implications by Ann E. Davis

    (6) A Closer Look at the Promise of the Blockchain in Banking and Biobanking by ValĂ©rie Racine and Anita Dancs

    (7) When the Cultural Argument Goes too Far: The Need to Limit Particularism and Welcome Convergence on Socially Progressive Goals by Anna Klimina

    Part III- Policy Issues

    (8) Industrial Policy and Societal Goals: A New Look at the American Case (from Hamilton to Obama and Trump) by Marco R. Di Tommaso, Mattia Tassinari and Andrea Ferrannini

    (9) Relational Determinants of International Environmental Cooperation: A Panel Analysis by Mimi Houston

    (10) Explaining Inequality: Facts are No Longer Enough by Dell Champlin and Janet Knoedler

    Biography

    Steven Pressman is Professor of Economics at Colorado State University, USA, and Emeritus Professor of Economics and Finance at Monmouth University, USA.