The Invisible Hand And The Weightless Economy

This is an excerpt from the 4-volume dictionary of economics, a reference book which aims to define the subject of economics today. 1300 subject entries in the complete work cover the broad themes of economic theory. This extract concentrates on the theory of the invisible hand.

Available Open Access under CC-BY-NC-ND Made famous by the Enlightenment thinker Adam Smith, the concept of an ‘invisible hand’ might be taken to imply that a government that governs least governs the best, from the viewpoint of society. Here an invisible hand appears to represent unfettered market forces. Drawing from this much-contested notion, Mittermaier indicates why such a view represents only one side of the story and distinguishes between what he calls pragmatic and dogmatic free marketeers. Published posthumously, with new contributions by Daniel Klein, Rod O’Donnell and Christopher Torr, this book outlines Mittermaier’s main thesis and his relevance for ongoing debates within economics, politics, sociology and philosophy.

An easy-to-read and comprehensive description of the world of economics. Includes simple graphics, comprehensive examples, numerous anecdotes and historical illustrations. Instructive and entertaining at the same time.

The Invisible Hand? offers a radical departure from the conventional wisdom of economists and economic historians, by showing that 'factor markets' and the economies dominated by them -- the market economies -- are not modern, but have existed at various times in the past. They rise, stagnate, and decline; and consist of very different combinations of institutions embedded in very different societies. These market economies create flexibility and high mobility in the exchange of land, labour, and capital, and initially they generate economic growth, although they also build on existing social structures, as well as existing exchange and allocation systems. The dynamism that results from the rise of factor markets leads to the rise of new market elites who accumulate land and capital, and use wage labour extensively to make their wealth profitable. In the long term, this creates social polarization and a decline of average welfare. As these new elites gradually translate their economic wealth into political leverage, it also creates institutional sclerosis, and finally makes these markets stagnate or decline again. This process is analysed across the three major, pre-industrial examples of successful market economies in western Eurasia: Iraq in the early Middle Ages, Italy in the high Middle Ages, and the Low Countries in the late Middle Ages and the early modern period, and then parallels drawn to England and the United States in the modern period. These areas successively saw a rapid rise of factor markets and the associated dynamism, followed by stagnation, which enables an in-depth investigation of the causes and results of this process.

What is Invisible Hand The phrase "the invisible hand" is a metaphor that was developed by Adam Smith, a Scottish moral philosopher. It is used to explain the incentives that free markets frequently generate for individuals who are motivated by their own self-interest to act in the benefit of the public. In the beginning, Smith only offered particular examples when he invoked the phrase. It is mentioned once in his Theory of Moral Sentiments, which was published in 1759, as a component of an argument that defends monopolistic land ownership through the trickle-down effect. However, it is also used once in his Wealth of Nations, where he explains that foreign traders can be trusted provided the incentives are appropriate, which frequently eliminates the need for governments to intervene. This is the most famous usage of the phrase. How you will benefit (I) Insights, and validations about the following topics: Chapter 1: Invisible hand Chapter 2: Adam Smith Chapter 3: David Ricardo Chapter 4: Economics Chapter 5: Free market Chapter 6: Homo economicus Chapter 7: Index of economics articles Chapter 8: Laissez-faire Chapter 9: Capital (economics) Chapter 10: Classical economics Chapter 11: The Wealth of Nations Chapter 12: History of capitalist theory Chapter 13: Productive and unproductive labour Chapter 14: Returns (economics) Chapter 15: History of economic thought Chapter 16: Preference (economics) Chapter 17: Economic liberalism Chapter 18: Perspectives on capitalism by school of thought Chapter 19: Justice and the Market Chapter 20: Economic democracy Chapter 21: Economic opportunism (II) Answering the public top questions about invisible hand. (III) Real world examples for the usage of invisible hand in many fields. Who this book is for Professionals, undergraduate and graduate students, enthusiasts, hobbyists, and those who want to go beyond basic knowledge or information for any kind of invisible hand.