参加网络经济学课程学习的同学请注意.pdf

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1、参加网络经济学课程学习的同学请注意参加网络经济学课程学习的同学请注意Introduction Into Evolutionary EconomicsIntroduction Into Evolutionary EconomicsTeacher:Prof.Dr.Carsten Herrmann-Pillath,Witten/Herdecke University,GermanyIn a non-technical fashion,the course offers an introduction into the newly emerging field ofEvolutionary Econo

2、mics.Basic concepts and methodological premises are developed,followingan independent approach which is closely related to European intellectual traditions in economics(e.g.institutional economics,theory of order,regulation theory,Schumpeterian economics,Austrian School etc.).Teaching methodology is

3、 erotetic,based on the Socratian approach to gain new knowledgevia posing questions and conducting an open and equal dialogue between student and teacher.Theclass presupposes prior independent study by the students,the underlying material of which isoffered via the .Students are asked to prepare the

4、iranswers to the questions by exploiting this material,however they are free to include independentresearch and viewpoints.The website contains numerous links to other resources that can be usedfor this purpose.In particular,they are strongly encouraged to find their own solutions and todevelop thei

5、r independent opinion.In the classroom,the teacher actively participates in the freediscussion among the students and provides additional information and perspectives.The class is concluded with a written examination where one out of two questions for choice hasto be discussed.Original and critical

6、thought is especially praised,with less emphasis onright or wrong.Languages used in the classroom are English and Chinese.The written examination is in Chinese(clearly written).Session One:Session One:First Steps Toward a New View of Economics:Knowledge and NetworksFirst Steps Toward a New View of E

7、conomics:Knowledge and Networks1-1.What are the costs of the entrepreneur?Are they included in the data from the accountingdepartment?1-2.People often decide with incomplete information and even total ignorance about the future.Do you think that they can apply some optimization calculus about the ne

8、cessary investment intothe collection of information?What are the alternatives?Imagine yourself buying a new computerwith cutting edge equipment.How do you find the best buy?When do you stop searching forfurther market intelligence?1-3.How would you define knowledge?Is there always a subject who kno

9、ws theknowledge?Consider some social rules the function of which might differ from the meaning thatis assigned to the rules by the participant subjects.Draw a comparison with theknowledgethat is embodied in your genes.1-4.What is the difference between the following two views of the market?a)The mar

10、ket is theplace where supply and demand meet and are equilibrated via the price mechanism,and b)themarket is a complex social network where subjects communicate and process information to findopportunities for mutually beneficial bargains.Try to define a network of relations between actorsand compar

11、e your concept with standard descriptions of markets in a microeconomics textbook.1-5.In what way do structures of networks constitute power of an actor?What does power meanin the economic context?In the context of competition,power is often perceived as beingdetrimental to the emergence of socially

12、 optimal outcomes.However,how about the role of powerfor stabilizing structures of networks that coordinate market transactions?Session Two:Session Two:Ends and Means in an Evolutionary ContextEnds and Means in an Evolutionary Context2-1.Many economists think that preferences are given and do not ne

13、ed to be explained.People arepresumed to find an equilibrium of their conflicting wants such that they are fully satisfied withtheir realized state of consumption.Yet,try to understand consumption and preferences with aview on then existence of internal conflicts,for example,between the wish to have

14、 a beautifulbody and the drive to eat a lot of delicious things,or between short-term interests in leisure andlong-term interests in professional success.How can we explain the different kinds of preferences,and how can we understand the way of solving the conflicts?Is the equilibrium concept really

15、sensible here?2-2.Do you think that it makes a difference whether people try to maximize their perceived levelof material welfare or whether they try to maximize their relative position to other people?What isthe implication for social cooperation and social order?Try to find some arguments why them

16、aximization of relative status might be engrained in our genes as a result of natural evolution.What kind of evidence do you find in everyday life?2-3.Economists mostly think of people being led by self-interest and rational choice.In reality,there is much room for symphathy,love and hatred and othe

17、r emotions.Think of problems ofstrategic interaction where irrational behavior may lead toward optimal outcomes!Strategicinteraction involves complex issues of mutualinformation about the knowledge of the differentactors involved.How can emotional commitment help to overcome obstacles against a solu

18、tion tothe problem to understand and anticipate the others action?2-4.One of the main achievements of human history is the capability to create large organizations.Consider different explanations of the emergence of the organization in a market context.Towhich extent can we explain the organization

19、as a result of explicit human design?Can we thinkof goals of the organization which are partly autonomous from the goals of the individualmembers?Session Three:Session Three:Patterns of Process and ChangePatterns of Process and Change3-1.Think about time.In most scientific analyses,time is treated a

20、s a linear arrow between pastand future.How far can we say that time has also a structure?Imagine production as a chain ofelementary processes which cannot be further subdivided in time.In what way are simultaneousevents a crucial determinant of the specific outcome?How is coordination of different

21、processesin time possible?Think of economic development as an increasing complexity of structures oftime!3-2.How does the past determine the present?Take technology as an example,as,for instance,theautomobile.How far are current technological choices restrained by past events in technologyevolution?

22、Try to understand technology as a network,both on the material and the social level.How do network structures channel further technological change?3-3.A fundamental concept of any evolutionary explanation is the mechanism of variation,selection and retention.Imagine the market process and try to dep

23、ict it as a VSR-mechanism.Could you think of technology evolving via VSR-processes?How is planned construction relatedto evolution?What is the role played by limited knowledge about complex systems?Pay specialattention to the sources of variety and to the mechanisms of retention.Consider what happen

24、s ifthe mechanisms of retention are themselves the object of a VSR-process.3-4.We can say that an economic system maintains a state of order as compared to itsenvironment.For this,the system needs energy.Try to apply the laws ofthermodynamics on this.How far can we can go in reaching certain conclus

25、ions forenergy policy?For example,should we try to minimize energy throughput as far aspossible,even if market prices suggest otherwise?Should the government pursue anexplicit policy to save resources?Or,will the market regulate the proper preparationfor future needs?Session Four:Session Four:Evolut

26、ion of StructureEvolution of Structure4-1.How can we distinguish between different levels of evolution?What is the relation betweenunits of selection and complexity of VSR-mechanisms?Consider the effect of a self-referentialVSR-process.Apply these theoretical distinctions on human social organizatio

27、n and cooperation.For example,consider cooperation among villagers who collectively organize an irrigation system,and who stay in a competitive relation with a neighbouring nomadic tribe who might try to liveparasitically on the village by means of regular raids.How far can we go with an individuali

28、sticexplanation of observed patterns,and do we need a concept of group selection?4-2.Analyze the different functions of institutions in the economy.How far can weexplain these as a result of rational choice among a larger group of actors?Discuss therelation between evolution and revolution in instit

29、utional change,takingChinas recent history as an example.4-3.Consider market institutions that cope with the problem of qualityuncertainty.How can they emerge spontaneously out of the market process?To which extent is apowerful intervention needed to create and stabilize such institutions?4-4.Is the

30、re a relation between technology and institutions?Broaden your view onorganizations.How far is technology evolution determined by internal factors,howfar by external factors,i.e.referring to the institutional and organizationalenvironment?Is there an interactive relation,with technology also determi

31、ning theevolution of institutions and organizations?4-5.Analyse the different kinds of knowledge involved in technology evolution.Testyour result by means of applying it on the question how users influence technologyevolution.Session Five:Session Five:Emergence of OrderEmergence of Order5-1.Many peo

32、ple think that culture is an important determinant of economicdevelopment.How can culture be fit into an evolutionary approach?How do youthink about recent fears about aclash between civilizations?Try to distinguishbetween negative and positive economic effects of cultural distinctiveness amonggroup

33、s and peoples.5-2.How can we explain human action as a result of the endowment with certainempowering resources?These might be conceived of as kinds of capital.Pay specialattention to endowments related to institutions and networks.Many economists usethe term social capital here.Check whether the co

34、ncept of capital isapplied in an appropriate way,for example,by comparing it with financial capital.5-3.Many people talk about the competitiveness of countries and regions.Developyour own view of the possible determinants resulting from the interaction ofstructures of technology,institutions and pow

35、er relations.Do you think that there is acertain match between particular technologies and social and political structures?Payspecial attention to the role of space and place:Will the modern digital technologyand the internet eventually make them irrelevant for the competitiveness ofenterprises?Will Made in China be completely substituted by Made byHaier?