Voluntary exchange is the act of
buyers and
sellers freely and willingly engaging in
market transactions.
Voluntary exchange is a fundamental assumption in
classical economics
Classical economics, classical political economy, or Smithian economics is a school of thought in political economy that flourished, primarily in Britain, in the late 18th and early-to-mid 19th century. Its main thinkers are held to be Adam S ...
and
neoclassical economics
Neoclassical economics is an approach to economics in which the production, consumption and valuation (pricing) of goods and services are observed as driven by the supply and demand model. According to this line of thought, the value of a good ...
which forms the basis of contemporary
mainstream economics
Mainstream economics is the body of knowledge, theories, and models of economics, as taught by universities worldwide, that are generally accepted by economists as a basis for discussion. Also known as orthodox economics, it can be contrasted to ...
.
That is, when neoclassical economists theorize about the world, they assume voluntary exchange is taking place. Building on this assumption, neoclassical economics goes on to conclude a variety of important results such as that market activity is efficient, that free trade has net positive effects and that markets in which economic agents participate voluntarily make them better off. Notably, neoclassical economists—baseding the assumption of voluntary exchange—deny the
Marxist
Marxism is a left-wing to far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand class relations and social conflict and a dialecti ...
definition of the
exploitation of labour
Exploitation of labour (also known as labor) is a concept defined as, in its broadest sense, one agent taking unfair advantage of another agent. It denotes an unjust social relationship based on an asymmetry of power or unequal exchange of value b ...
as a possibility within neoclassically defined
capitalism
Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit. Central characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets, price system, private ...
.
Marxian economics
Marxian economics, or the Marxian school of economics, is a heterodox school of political economic thought. Its foundations can be traced back to Karl Marx's critique of political economy. However, unlike critics of political economy, Marxian ...
, one of the major alternatives to neoclassical economics, contends that the exploitation of labor is both possible with voluntary exchange and a definitional condition of the
capitalist mode of production, among other
modes of production.
According to Dr Marianne Johnson, there is no theoretical basis for arguing that partially or completely voluntary exchange is preferable to other arrangements such as government mandates.
Voluntary exchange is sometimes at the root of arguments about the morality of markets. Market proponents often invoke what they believe is the morality as well as the supposed efficiency of voluntary exchange to argue against government mandates, including many forms of taxation. The morality of markets, even those rarely adhering to true voluntary exchange, are nonetheless in dispute.
References
Free market
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