Thorstein Veblen was a founding father of original, or old, institutional economics. The social and evolutionary usage of things and thoughts are at the center of Veblen's approach. In his studies, he dealt with psychological, social, anthropological and economic issues. The psychological content of Veblen's writing takes instinctive and habitual issues into consideration. The proposal of this paper is to revisit the psychology of Veblen's conspicuous consumer. In such a task, this paper discusses the role of observation and cognition in habit building, and their influence on the conspicuous consumer. It also introduces a psychological explanation of the importance of the leisure class to the conspicuous consumer. In order to build the analysis, this paper takes into account elements of Albert Bandura's vicarious learning. These elements are introduced to highlight vicarious observation as a key component of Veblen's conspicuous consumer.
Thorstein Veblen, a founder of original or old institutional economics, combined social and evolutionary thought in his institutionalist approach to dealing with psychological, social, and economic issues. The psychological content of Veblen's writings takes instinct and habits into consideration. The economic literature on the psychological content of Veblen's writings has focused on habits, despite the importance of instincts in Veblen's works. This paper attempts to discuss Veblen's notion of instincts in order to make its role clearer in his approach to conspicuous consumer decision making. It discusses the role of instincts, the instinct of workmanship, the relationship between habits and instincts, and their influence on the conspicuous consumer. Consequently, this paper contributes to a better understanding of how inner forces and socialization culminate in behavior in Veblen's conspicuous consumer approach.
ResumoThorstein Veblen foi um dos fundadores da Economia Institucional Original ou Velha Economia Institucional. Em seus escritos, Veblen associou as lógicas social e evolucionária em sua abordagem institucional -contemplando elementos da Psicologia, da Sociologia e da Economia. O conteúdo psicológico dos escritos de Veblen considera instintos e hábitos. A literatura econômica sobre o tema tem seu foco na análise dos hábitos, apesar da importância dos instintos na obra de Veblen. Este artigo discute a noção de instintos para Veblen em busca de esclarecer o papel dos instintos na tomada de decisão do consumidor conspícuo vebleniano, o papel dos instintos, o instinto do trabalho eficiente, a relação entre hábitos e instintos e sua influência sobre o consumidor conspícuo. *
If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information.
About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation.
AbstractPurpose -The aim of this paper is to present an analytical narrative of the construction of the Brazilian market of functional yogurt, highlighting the role of Danone as an institutional entrepreneur. Design/methodology/approach -After putting together a theoretical basis from business studies and institutional economics, the paper explores factual evidence of strategic moves by dairy firms in Brazil. Findings -Danone, despite being a second mover, has been able to effectively make use of new values and collective concerns regarding food functionality to create a favourable institutional set in which to operate. Other firms have not been able to challenge its position in the market, simply abiding by the concepts and values created by Danone. Practical implications -On the one hand, case studies based on traditional economic theories usually approach markets with supply and demand adjustment tools or taking technology as exogenous and the sole determinant of the existence of a market. On the other hand, traditional business theories highlight an individual entrepreneur as the only relevant object of analysis. This study offers an alternative guideline to study markets with creative players that craft not only new physical products or directly delivered services, but also concepts and ideas. Studies of other markets or similar markets in different countries can benefit from its insights. Originality/value -The functional yogurt market in Brazil has not previously been object of academic research, and the combined framework of analysis in this study may offer guidance for other market studies.
The systematic emergence of the test approach to index numbers took place in the early 1920s, a period marked by pluralism in American economics. Promoted by Irving Fisher, the test approach to index numbers aimed to select a universally valid, ideal formula for index numbers by employing a series of mathematical tests. However, from the first presentation of Fisher's approach, at the 1920 Annual Meeting of the American Statistical Association, to the publication of his book The Making of Index Numbers, in 1922, he faced a series of criticisms, not addressed to his ideal formula per se, but rather aimed at the very idea that a universal formula for index numbers could be singled out. The most prominent individuals involved in this debate were Wesley Mitchell, Warren Persons, Correa Walsh (Fisher's only supporter), and Allyn Young. Among them, the foremost representative of Fisher's antagonists was Mitchell. This study aims at reconstructing this antagonism, arguing that the disagreements between Fisher and Mitchell resulted from their different backgrounds and their distinct understandings of economics as a science. More specifically, this article illustrates how Fisher, as a mathematical economist, privileged a universalist conception of science, while Mitchell, as an institutionalist, understood economics as a contextual and historical discipline, and it illustrates how these preconceptions spilled over to their debates on index numbers. To illuminate such positions, this study explores their archival correspondence.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.