Anti-Meritocratic Economics in the Contemporary Era: The Issues with the Neoclassical Theory

No longer does society consider the full extent of the argument and consequences or benefits of a system change. All the record-breaking economic success of the last few decades simply furthers a divide between people/organizations that have money and people/organizations that need money. However, those that can view this divide assign the capitalistic system as the culprit when in fact it is the modern mutation of capitalism that is at fault. Within modern neoclassical economies, there is no form of value-based meritocracy between people and organizations.

Anti-Meritocratic Economics in the Contemporary Era: The Issues with the Neoclassical Theory

No longer does society consider the full extent of the argument and consequences or benefits of a system change. All the record-breaking economic success of the last few decades simply furthers a divide between people/organizations that have money and people/organizations that need money. However, those that can view this divide assign the capitalistic system as the culprit when in fact it is the modern mutation of capitalism that is at fault. Within modern neoclassical economies, there is no form of value-based meritocracy between people and organizations.

The Model of Bounded Rationality: a New Methodological Tool of Economic Theory

The main purpose of this article is to study and analyze the economic behaviour of market participants in real conditions, and to outline the very natural trait of individuals to show bounded rationality. The theoretical framework of bounded rationality is presented, and a comparative analysis is carried out between the neoclassical theory of rational behaviour and the concept of quasi-rational economic agents according to behavioural economics. Special emphasis is placed on the correlation between the decisionmaking process and the concept of limited rationality. This article confirms the thesis that the model of the rational economic individual is not the best model. Research in this area proves that this model has great imperfections, but, at the moment, the empirical material is still not enough to create another, newer and practically applicable model of behaviour of the real economic person, which is characterized by bounded rationality.

The reswitching of techniques and its epistemological implications: a deepening of criticism

ABSTRACT This paper aims (a) to explain the mechanisms from which the problem of reswitching of techniques is formulated and (b) to analyze the implications with regard to the general architecture of neoclassical macroeconomics. I will show how these elements allow refuting the neoclassical theory of income distribution, and why they translate into structural instability. In the first part, I will explain the mechanisms that correspond to the problem of reswitching of techniques; in the second part, I will study the implications linked to the reswitching, with regard to the determinants of income distribution and the equilibrium stability.

Model Ketimpangan Pembangunan Ekonomi di Indonesia

The purpose of this study is to analyze the effect of economic growth on the level of development inequality between provinces in Indonesia. The research method used is multiple linear regression analysis with OLS (ordinary least squares). The results of the analysis show that the inequality of economic development between provinces in Indonesia in 2005-2019 is relatively high because every year there is a significant increase, this fact is in line with the Neoclassical theory. Economic growth, poverty rate and population have a positive effect on inequality in economic development. The policy implication is that the provincial government in Indonesia should pay attention to sectors that absorb labor as a contribution to the level of economic growth and empower small communities.

Krishna Bharadwaj on the Role of Expectations in Economic Theory

In this article, I discuss the approach favoured by Bharadwaj, in the tradition of classical political economy and of Sraffa, where the focus is on those factors that are observed as opposed to the subjective factors that are neither observable nor measurable. Unlike neoclassical theory, with this approach, there is no room for concepts such as ‘utility’ and the like; insofar as ‘expectations’ are conceived as subjective, non-observable entities, they are not attributed with an explanatory role in the theory of prices and distribution. Moreover, since expectation formation is seen as the effect rather than cause of behaviour, the focus shifts to those social, historical and contingent elements that seem to have a better explanatory force. In this approach, what matters is the persistence of forces leading the system to tend, in the long period, towards a position of rest. JEL Codes: B2, B31

Transformations of the Cambridge Critique

The debate on capital theory has recently been revived. Reswitching had led to agnosticism regarding the substitution of capital for labour in consequence of changes in the rate or profit. The paradoxes of reswitching and reverse capital deepening now turn out to be rare for theoretical reasons, and this is confirmed empirically, but new results also show that the possibilities of substitution between capital and labour are quite limited; their ratio is given within narrow limits by technology, if the choice of techniques is efficient. This is a new critique of neoclassical theory; it confirms the complementary theories of distribution advanced by the Cambridge economists: the share of profits is influenced by effective demand (Kaldor) and by the level of interest rates as an element of cost (Sraffa). Both theories presuppose the stability of the capital-output ratio. This finding also sheds light on the options of central banks regarding the fixation of interest rates. JEL Code: B51, C67, D57, E11, E13, E44

Growth and institutional changes: a historical evolution

ABSTRACT This paper highlights the fact that neoclassical theory cannot explain the process of economic change. In an uncertain and ever-changing world, a theory based on static equilibrium models is of little help. Whereas we have placed the institutions at the centre of the understanding of economic systems, since they constitute their incentive structure. Thus, economic change is largely an intentional process created by individuals’ perceptions of the consequences of their actions. These perceptions, coming from the beliefs of individuals, combine with their preferences. In the end, a dynamic theory of economic change will not be built, but an attempt will be made to understand the link between institutions and economic growth, the process of change, and to develop assumptions, within its limits, capable of improving the human environment and economic results.

Empirical Verification of the Occurrence of Lucas Paradox in the Region of Central – Eastern Europe

The purpose of this article is to study the occurrence of the Lucas paradox in the region of Central-Eastern Europe. According to the research conducted by Robert Lucas (1990), the direction of the international capital flows is different than the neoclassical theory suggests. The capital does not flow from the richer, high-income economies to the poorer, but rather stays in those with the higher capital resources or flows to the other ones with similar level of GDP. The paper verifies whether the paradox appears in the region, in the way that it examines the impact of the GDP on the FDI inflows. Additionally, the study implements few basic models with factors that may potentially resolve the puzzle of the capital flows. The study method is based on panel data estimations, initially using pooled OLS, and subsequently using fixed or random effects models as appropriate. The examined economies are the member states of the European Union, from the region of Central-Eastern Europe, and the examined years are 2000-2018. Based on the literature, and the widely emphasized need for differentiating between the types of international capital flows, the article focus is on the foreign direct investment only, as they constitute large part of the whole global capital flows. Results of the research confirm the presence of the paradox in the region in the examined period. Even though the estimation of the additional models helps to remove the effects of the paradox for the region, it does not fully explain under which circumstances the neoclassical theory would be applicable. None of the applied models reverses the sign of the GDP variable to negative, keeping it statistically significant at the same time.