Veblen's critique of Marx's philosophical preconceptions of political economy

This paper explores some of the theoretical linkages between Thorstein Veblen and Karl Marx. Special reference is placed Veblen's criticisms of Marx and the Marxist tradition for adhering to the preconceptions of (a) the natural right of labour to the full product, and (b) the teleology of conscious agents directing action towards change. Veblen was incorrect to believe that Marx adhered to the natural right of labour thesis, but he was correct to assert that Marx utilized undesirable teleologies. Overall, however, Veblen was attempting to reformulate and modernise the materialistic conception of history through an evolutionary analysis of institutions. The two thinkers complement each other in important ways, although Veblen's analysis is more evolutionary, collectivist and holistic.     

Original Institutional Economics and Political Anthropology: Reflections on the Nature of Coercive Power and Vested Interests in the Works of Thorstein Veblen and Pierre Clastres

Our inquiry advances a comparison of the anthropological content of Thorstein Veblen’s evolutionary perspective with the foundations of the political anthropology drawn from selected works of Pierre Clastres. We seek to establish that what can be referred to as a clastrean reference can simultaneously offer new perspectives on institutionalism, while maintaining a radical and emancipatory understanding of Veblen’s writings. In this sense, we seek to reconsider and reevaluate the role of economic surplus drawn from Veblen’s anthropology, while also offering a general and critical perspective for understanding the emergence of coercive power within societies.     

Thorstein Veblen’s 1904 contributions to q and insider/outsider analysis

The early 20th century saw the first steps in a tradition of leading economists explaining the link between corporate finance, investment and capital valuation. The writings of Keynes, and Tobin deal with the development of an investment theory based on the financial structure. However there is no mention Veblen, whereas he made an early American analysis of corporate governance structure. Our work is based on a critical review of the literature, which is guilty of omissions, lack of accuracy and errors of formalization. So that, we focus on the reasons why Veblen’s corporate financial analysis should not be forgotten.     

From Social Theory to Explaining Sickonomics: A Response to Dimitris Milonakis and Ben Fine

This response shows that, in their reply to my critique of their work, Ben Fine and Dimitris Milonakis generally maintain the impression that there is a single, widely accepted definition of methodological individualism, but they do not identify it. They assert that social structures (undefined but seemingly specified to exclude law and institutions) have ‘analytical priority’ and logically (but tacitly) imply that individuals should have no part in the analysis of social or economic phenomena. They mischaracterise Hodgson's (2011) position on Marshall by quoting just one part-sentence out of context. Fine, Milonakis and Hodgson agree that the intellectual roots of the predominance of technique over substance in modern economics can partly be traced to the 1870–1900 period, but disagree on what they are.     

Schumpeter's theory of economic evolution: a Darwinian interpretation

A general Darwinian framework is employed to arrive at an interpretation of Schumpeter's work that brings out clearly its specific evolutionary aspects. Schumpeter's theory of economic evolution is seen to be still highly relevant to evolutionary economics, because it sheds light on some fundamental issues: the relationship between evolutionary theory and equilibrium analysis, the usefulness of Darwinian theory for economics, and the precise nature of the evolutionary forces at work in economic systems.     

A dynamic framework for analyzing technology standardisation using network analysis and game theory

As more technologies and industries converge, technology standards are more likely to be a strategic factor for firms and governments that are interested in the market with standards-based competition. From the previous research, a new standardisation framework was proposed by combining network analysis and the game theory model but was constrained by feasibility and dynamic approach. In this study, the case of the standards war between HD-DVD and Blu-ray was analyzed with patent data as an empirical case considering a dynamic framework. With this framework, we observed a change in a firm’s technology relations and could predict the decline in a firm’s preference and the shift of equilibrium ahead of Toshiba’s resignation.     

Learning to choose a commodity-money: Carl Menger's theory of imitation and the search monetary framework

This paper studies Carl Menger's theory of the emergence of a commodity money. We propose an interpretation of Menger's learning by imitation process based on the search theoretical formal framework. We show that there exists a tension between the importance of intrinsic properties of commodities and the pure conventional self-fulfilling expectations of agents. This confirms the role of imitation in the emergence of monetary equilibria in search theory. We conclude that Menger's approach may support the idea that the fundamental property of a commodity-money (namely its great liquidity) is the result of its emergence process and not necessarily of its original intrinsic properties.     

The current status and systematic framework of talent programmes in basic research in China: a system theory perspective

Talent programmes are treated as a strategic foundation for social–economic development in China. With increasing levels of funding for basic research, talent programmes in basic research are becoming more complex. This increased complexity leads to inefficiencies because it is difficult to coordinate and manage these talent programmes effectively. This paper reports a survey of talent programmes in basic research in China. The results show that talent programmes in basic research have not yet formed an integrated system and that there exist some weaknesses in integration, structure, hierarchy and chronological order. Based on these conclusions, this paper proposes a framework for the talent programme system in basic research using system theory. Furthermore, measures to address weaknesses in the existing talent programme system are provided and analysed according to China's national talent strategy. These measures should be helpful for promoting the operation of talent programmes and optimising their overall performance.     

Schumpeter and the `Schmollerprogramm': integrating theory and history in the analysis of economic development

This essay addresses the historical and institutional aspects of Schumpeter's thought. It suggests that Schumpeter prepared a pluralist research agenda, formulated in accordance with the conceptual perspective of the German Historical School, as presented by major scholars such as Schmoller, Sombart, Spiethoff and Max Weber. Schumpeter's notion of development, with its emphasis on the correspondence of economic and socio-cultural evolution, is therefore to be viewed in the context of the comprehensive Schmollerian approach. Moreover the ethical-evolutionary components of Schmoller's ideas point at the vital role of the German Historical School in the elaboration of a modern evolutionary economics in Schumpeterian terms. The essay concludes that the Schmollerprogramm is going to inspire further developments in Schumpeterian economics, as the integration of theory and history continuously marks the research agenda of evolutionary approaches to economic development.