Market fundamentalism
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Market fundamentalism, also known as free-market fundamentalism, is a term applied to a strong belief in the ability of
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Origins and use
Palagummi Sainath believes Jeremy Seabrook, a journalist and campaigner, first used the term.[3] The term was used by Jonathan Benthall in an Anthropology Today editorial in 1991[4] and by John Langmore and John Quiggin in their 1994 book Work for All.[5]
According to economist John Quiggin, the standard features of economic fundamentalist rhetoric are dogmatic assertions combined with the claim that anyone who holds contrary views is not a real economist.[6] However, Kozul-Wright states in his book The Resistible Rise of Market Fundamentalism that the "ineluctability of market forces" neoliberals and conservative politicians tend to stress and their confidence on a chosen policy rest on a "mixture of implicit and hidden assumptions, myths about the history of their own countries' economic development, and special interests camouflaged in their rhetoric of general good".[7] The sociologists Fred L. Block and Margaret Somers use the label "because the term conveys the quasi-religious certainty expressed by contemporary advocates of market self-regulation".[8]
The theories that I (and others) helped develop explained why unfettered markets often not only do not lead to social justice, but do not even produce efficient outcomes. Interestingly, there has been no intellectual challenge to the refutation of Adam Smith's invisible hand: individuals and firms, in the pursuit of their self-interest, are not necessarily, or in general, led as if by an invisible hand, to economic efficiency.[10]
— Joseph Stiglitz
Critics of laissez-faire policies have used the term to denote what they perceive as a misguided belief or deliberate deception that
Critics claim that in modern society with worldwide conglomerates, or even merely large companies, the individual has no protection against fraud nor harm caused by products that maximize income by imposing externalities on the individual consumer as well as society. Historian Edward E. Baptist contends that "unrestrained domination of market forces can sometimes amplify existing forms of oppression into something more horrific" such as slavery and that "market fundamentalism doesn't always provide the best solution for every economic or social problem".[16]
See also
- Anarcho-capitalism
- "Authoritarian liberalism", a concept by Hermann Heller
- Casino capitalism
- Criticism of anarcho-capitalism
- Criticism of libertarianism
- Economic liberalism
- Late capitalism
- Neoliberalism
- Objectivism
- Profit motive
- Right-libertarianism
- Social Darwinism
References
- ^ a b "Block, Fred. Market Fundamentalism, Longview Institute". Archived from the original on 2017-07-15. Retrieved 2008-04-23.
- ^ market fundemmentalism, UNESCWA
- ^ "Sainath, P. And then there was the market". Archived from the original on 2023-02-10. Retrieved 2008-01-23.
- ^ Benthall, Jonathan, "Inside information on 'the market'", Anthropology Today, 7.4, August 1991, pp.1–2.
- from the original on 11 December 2020. Retrieved 30 January 2012.
- ^ Quiggin, John. Rationalism and Rationality in Economics, 1999, On Line Opinion, www.onlineopinion.com.au
- ^ Kozul-Wright, Richard and Rayment, Paul. The Resistible Rise of Market Fundamentalism: Rethinking Development Policy in an Unbalanced World. London: Zed Books Ltd., 2007 p. 14 and Chapter 6
- ^ Autobiographical essay in acceptance of the Bank of Sweden Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel
- ^ "Stiglitz, Joseph E. The pact with the devil. Beppe Grillo's Friends interview". Archived from the original on 2015-01-24. Retrieved 2013-10-29.
- ^ "Block, Fred. Reframing the Political Battle: Market Fundamentalism vs. Moral Economy, Longview Institute". Archived from the original on 2017-11-24. Retrieved 2007-05-08.
- ^ "Bidstrup, Scott. Free Market Fundamentalism: Friedman, Pinochet and the "Chilean Miracle", Revised 10/15/02". Archived from the original on 2009-01-30. Retrieved 2007-06-10.
- ^ "Beams, Nick. Soros warns of "market fundamentalism". WSWS : News & Analysis : World Economy 22 December 1998". 22 December 1998. Archived from the original on 27 October 2012. Retrieved 31 October 2011.
- ^ Stiglitz, Joseph. Redefining the Role of the State - What should it do ? How should it do it ? And how should these decisions be made? Paper presented at the Tenth Anniversary of MITI Research Institute, Tokyo, March 1998. Archived 2008-05-29 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Soros, George, "The worst market crisis in 60 years. Archived 2015-07-03 at the Wayback Machine" Financial Times, January 22, 2008 19:57
- ^ Edward Baptist (September 7, 2014). What the Economist Doesn't Get About Slavery—And My Book Archived 2023-01-20 at the Wayback Machine. Politico. Retrieved May 23, 2015.
Bibliography and further reading
- Albers, Detlev; Haeler, Stephen; Meyer, Henning, eds. (23 June 2006). Social Europe: A Continent's Answer to Market Fundamentalism. London: European Research Forum at London Metropolitan University. ISBN 978-0-9547448-3-0.
- Camerer, C. (1995): Individual Decision Making, in: Kagel, J.H. & Roth, A.E. (Eds.): Handbook of Experimental Economics, Princeton, Princeton University Press, 587–703. ISBN 978-0-691-05897-9
- Cox, Harvey (2016). The Market as God. ISBN 9780674659681
- French-Davis, Ricardo. Reforming Latin America's Economies: After Market Fundamentalism. Palgrave Macmillan, 2006. ISBN 978-1403949455
- Kelsey, Jane (1995). A Review of Economic Fundamentalism: The New Zealand Experiment - A World Model for Structural Adjustment?. ISBN 1-86940-130-1
- Kozul-Wright, Richard. The Resistible Rise of Market Fundamentalism: The Struggle for Economic Development in a Global Economy. United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), London: ZedBooks Ltd., 2007. ISBN 9781842776377
- Ritzer, George, ed. (2003). The Blackwell Companion to Major Social Theorists. Blackwell Companions to Sociology. Blackwell publishing. ISBN 978-0-631-20710-8.
- Soros, George (1998). The Crisis of Global Capitalism: The Crisis of Global Capitalism: Open Society Endangered. New York: PublicAffairs. ISBN 978-1-891620-27-0
- Soros, George (2008). The New Paradigm for Financial Markets: The Credit Crisis of 2008 and What It Means. New York: PublicAffairs. ISBN 978-1-58648-683-9.
- Sunder, S (1995). "Experimental Asset Markets: A Survey". In Kagel, J.H.; Roth, A.E. (eds.). Handbook of Experimental Economics. Princeton: Princeton University Press. pp. 445–500. ISBN 978-0-691-05897-9