Tackling Keynes’ Question: A Look Back on 15 years of Learning to Consume

Chai, Andreas

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-02423-9_6

Cited by 5 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 93 publications

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“…This behaviour is consistent with both the theoretical prediction and the empirical evidence offered by the learning-to-consume theory as described in evolutionary economics: consumers new to the market experience a phase of exploration in which they develop a taste for variety up to the point they reach a level of satiation (Chai, 2017).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 88%

“…Our results show that the variety of music selection is not unlimited, but has an upper bound of a remarkably similar size for any individual: more than a class attribute or a rational attempt of social belonging, eclectic music purchase behavior appears to be an individual attitude, a ‘ practical disposition ’ (Lizardo and Skiles, 2012) to explore cultural fields before concentrating on a limited number of preferences. This behavior is consistent with both the theoretical prediction and the empirical evidence offered by the learning-to-consume theory as described in evolutionary economics: consumers new to the market experience a phase of exploration in which they develop a taste for variety until the point where they reach a level of satiation (Chai, 2017).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 88%

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Beyond Class Stratification: The Rise of the Eclectic Music Consumer in the Modern Age

2018

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This article contributes to the literature on the association between class position and cultural tastes by analyzing a unique historical data set and asking whether there were significant class differences in the consumption of music in the 19th century. Archival data from a publisher in Milan are used to analyze the characteristics of customers who purchased sheet music between 1814 and 1823. To avoid contemporary depictions of cultural hierarchies (e.g. ‘highbrow’, ‘lowbrow’ and ‘omnivorous’ tastes), we offer a new method for considering both the quantitative and qualitative dimensions of music consumption. Considering both the aggregate level of music consumption and the evolution of individual patterns over time, we find little evidence that musical tastes were aligned with class position. This finding calls for more research on the origins of the strong link between social structure and cultural preferences in general, or between class position and musical tastes in particular, which we witness today.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 88%

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 88%

Beyond Class Stratification: The Rise of the Eclectic Music Consumer in the Modern Age

2018

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“…Growth in adoption of this meso rule set has not been rapid, it has occurred over decades. This has resulted in the observed increase in the share of GDP devoted to consumption expenditure (Witt (2001), Shrum et al (2013), Chai (2017), Xu et al (2019). The hypothesis here is that this kind of growth should follow a diffusion curve towards a limit, which is typically what we observe in complex systems when connective opportunities are taken by elements because of the emergence of an exploitable niche which, in the economic case, involves a facilitating meso-rule set.…”

Section: Consumption Behaviour In a Complex Economic Systemmentioning

confidence: 99%

The US consumption function: a new perspective

Foster

2020

J Evol Econ

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In the United States, the ratio of consumption to GDP has risen steadily over the past half century. In trying to understand why this ratio has increased so much, it is argued that standard models of the consumption function, built up from the neoclassical theory of constrained optimization, cannot offer a satisfactory answer. An alternative perspective is offered whereby aggregate consumption expenditure is seen as primarily the outcome of the population adopting widely upheld rules ('meso-rules') in a complex economic system. Aggregate consumption is viewed as the outcome of two contrasting historical processes: one mainly involving precommitted, rule-bound choices and the other involving open-ended choices, made knowingly in the face of uncertainty, to adopt new meso-rules concerning the consumption of novel kinds of goods and services. The former process provides the degree of order that must be present in any complex system and the latter facilitates evolutionary change to occur. Using over half a century of data, the US consumption function is modelled successfully on the presumption that the economy is a complex system. The evidence supports the hypothesis that the ratio of consumption to GDP has risen because of the diffusion of a 'culture of consumerism' in the post-war era and that the limit of this process is now being approached, with important macroeconomic and social implications.

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“…Economists have to come to terms with the fact that preferences are fundamentally shaped by cultural environments and that social interactions are, therefore, crucial determinants of economic outcomes. A naturalistic concept of wants presented by Witt (2001Witt ( , 2003 inspired by modern behavioral theory and cognitive psychology explains the origins and development of innate as well as learned wants (also Ruprecht 2005;Lades 2013;Chai 2017). Starting from an individual's set of innate wants this repertoire is extended by processes of non-cognitive (via conditioning) and cognitive learning of acquired wants.…”

Section: Cultural Transmission Mechanisms and Changing Preferencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Moreover, the continuous updating of these wants due to cultural preference learning processes prevents consumption motivation from ever vanishing (also Lades 2013). This naturalistic theory also addresses normative and (adverse) welfare implications as to, for example, the call for continual consumption growthprominent in traditional economicsin the face of difficult to satiate wants due to cultural learning dynamics (also Schubert and Cordes 2013;Chai 2017). In another contribution to this field, Woersdorfer (2010) shows how the demand for washing machines and other tools that meet the human want for cleanliness are strongly governed by culturally transmitted social norms prevalent in the agents' environment.…”

Section: Cultural Transmission Mechanisms and Changing Preferencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The promises of a naturalistic approach: how cultural evolution theory can inform (evolutionary) economics

Cordes

2019

J Evol Econ

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Humans are an ecologically extremely successful species. Underlying this achievement is our evolved unique adaptation for culture. Moreover, humans' cultural capacity initiated a process of gene-culture coevolution that lead to a plethora of behavioral and cognitive dispositions on which cultural adaptation to challenging environments via cultural evolution rests. These characteristics of human cognition are highly relevant to any discipline dealing with human behavior. This article presents these outcomes of human phylogeny and discusses this naturalistic perspective's implications for (evolutionary) economics. Moreover, some fruitful applications of cultural evolution theory to the explanation of economic phenomena are provided.Keywords Economic theory development . Cultural evolution theory . Learning mechanisms . Human behavior in economic contexts JEL classifications B41 . D00 . B52 . A12 "… a theory of behavior and cognition suitable for evolutionary economics needs to recognize the evolving cultural context of economic behavior and cognition." Richard R. Nelson (2016, p. 737)

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Tackling Keynes’ Question: A Look Back on 15 years of Learning to Consume

Cited by 5 publications

References 93 publications

Beyond Class Stratification: The Rise of the Eclectic Music Consumer in the Modern Age

Beyond Class Stratification: The Rise of the Eclectic Music Consumer in the Modern Age

The US consumption function: a new perspective

The promises of a naturalistic approach: how cultural evolution theory can inform (evolutionary) economics

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