Market fundamentalism, also known as free-market fundamentalism, is a term applied to a strong belief in the ability of unregulated ''

laissez-faire ''Laissez-faire'' ( , from , ) is a type of economic system in which transactions between private groups of people are free from any form of economic interventionism (such as subsidies or regulations). As a system of thought, ''laissez-faire'' ...

'' or free-market capitalist policies to solve most economic and social problems. It is often used as pejorative by critics of said beliefs.UNESCWAbr>''market fundemmentalism'', UNESCWA
/ref>

Origins and use

Palagummi Sainath believes Jeremy Seabrook, a journalist and campaigner, first used the term. The term was used by Jonathan Benthall in an '' Anthropology Today'' editorial in 1991 and by John Langmore and John Quiggin in their 1994 book ''Work for All''. According to economist John Quiggin, the standard features of economic fundamentalist rhetoric are

dogma Dogma, in its broadest sense, is any belief held definitively and without the possibility of reform. It may be in the form of an official system of principles or doctrines of a religion, such as Judaism, Roman Catholicism, Protestantism, or Islam ...

tic assertions combined with the claim that anyone who holds contrary views is not a real economist. Quiggin, John. ''Rationalism and Rationality in Economics'', 1999, On Line Opinion, www.onlineopinion.com.au However, Kozul-Wright states in his book ''The Resistible Rise of Market Fundamentalism'' that the "ineluctability of market forces" neoliberals and

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

politicians tend to stress and their confidence on a chosen policy rest on a "mixture of implicit and hidden assumptions, myths about the history of their own countries' economic development, and special interests camouflaged in their rhetoric of general good".Kozul-Wright, Richard and Rayment, Paul. ''The Resistible Rise of Market Fundamentalism: Rethinking Development Policy in an Unbalanced World''. London: Zed Books Ltd., 2007 p. 14 and Chapter 6 The sociologists Fred L. Block and Margaret Somers use the label "because the term conveys the quasi-religious certainty expressed by contemporary advocates of market self-regulation". Joseph Stiglitz used the term in his autobiographical essay in acceptance of

Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences The Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, officially the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel (), commonly referred to as the Nobel Prize in Economics(), is an award in the field of economic sciences adminis ...

to criticize some

International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution funded by 191 member countries, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It is regarded as the global lender of las ...

policies, arguing: "More broadly, the IMF was advocating a set of policies which is generally referred to alternatively as the

Washington consensus The Washington Consensus is a set of ten economic policy prescriptions considered in the 1980s and 1990s to constitute the "standard" reform package promoted for Economic crisis, crisis-wracked developing country, developing countries by the Was ...

, the neo-liberal doctrines, or market fundamentalism, based on an incorrect understanding of economic theory and (what I viewed) as an inadequate interpretation of the historical data".Autobiographical essay in acceptance of the Bank of Sweden Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel
/ref> Critics of ''laissez-faire'' policies have used the term to denote what they perceive as a misguided belief or deliberate deception that

capitalist Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their use for the purpose of obtaining profit. This socioeconomic system has developed historically through several stages and is defined by ...

free markets provide the greatest possible equity and prosperity, or the view that any interference with the market process decreases social well-being. Users of the term include adherents of interventionist,

mixed economy A mixed economy is an economic system that includes both elements associated with capitalism, such as private businesses, and with socialism, such as nationalized government services. More specifically, a mixed economy may be variously de ...

and

protectionist Protectionism, sometimes referred to as trade protectionism, is the economic policy of restricting imports from other countries through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, import quotas, and a variety of other government regulations. ...

positions as well as billionaires such as George Soros; economists such as Nobel Laureates Joseph StiglitzStiglitz, Joseph. ''Redefining the Role of the State - What should it do ? How should it do it ? And how should these decisions be made?'' Paper presented at the Tenth Anniversary of MITI Research Institute, Tokyo, March 1998.
and

Paul Krugman Paul Robin Krugman ( ; born February 28, 1953) is an American New Keynesian economics, New Keynesian economist who is the Distinguished Professor of Economics at the CUNY Graduate Center, Graduate Center of the City University of New York. He ...

; and

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

historian Edward E. Baptist. Soros suggests that market fundamentalism includes the belief that the best interests in a given society are achieved by allowing its participants to pursue their own financial self-interest with no restraint or regulatory oversight. Soros, George
"The worst market crisis in 60 years.
" ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...

'', January 22, 2008 19:57 Critics claim that in modern society with worldwide conglomerates, or even merely large companies, the individual has no protection against fraud nor harm caused by products that maximize income by imposing externalities on the individual consumer as well as society. Historian Edward E. Baptist contends that "unrestrained domination of market forces can sometimes amplify existing forms of oppression into something more horrific" such as

slavery Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

and that "market fundamentalism doesn't always provide the best solution for every economic or social problem".Edward Baptist (September 7, 2014)
What the ''Economist'' Doesn't Get About Slavery—And My Book
. ''

Politico ''Politico'' (stylized in all caps), known originally as ''The Politico'', is an American political digital newspaper company founded by American banker and media executive Robert Allbritton in 2007. It covers politics and policy in the Unit ...

.'' Retrieved May 23, 2015.

References

Bibliography and further reading

* * Camerer, C. (1995): Individual Decision Making, in: Kagel, J.H. & Roth, A.E. (Eds.): Handbook of Experimental Economics, Princeton, Princeton University Press, 587–703. * Cox, Harvey (2016). ''The Market as God.''

Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is an academic publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University. It is a member of the Association of University Presses. Its director since 2017 is George Andreou. The pres ...

. * French-Davis, Ricardo. ''Reforming Latin America's Economies: After Market Fundamentalism.'' Palgrave Macmillan, 2006. * * Kozul-Wright, Richard. ''The Resistible Rise of Market Fundamentalism: The Struggle for Economic Development in a Global Economy.'' United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), London: ZedBooks Ltd., 2007. * * * *

External links

Longview Institute page on Market Fundamentalism

The free market is an impossible utopia
''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

,'' July 18, 2014. {{DEFAULTSORT:Market Fundamentalism Capitalism Economic ideologies Economic liberalism Economic problems Ideologies of capitalism Neoconservatism Neoliberalism Management theory Political terminology

Origins and use

See also

References

Bibliography and further reading

External links