Question

Discuss any concept from Deidre McCloskey. You need to CLEARLY identify the source (i.e. name of the book and page, or link of the video and time, or name and link of the website). It is preferred that you use academic resources or books from the library.

What prompted Deidre McCloskey to develop the idea that you chose?
How would you use this concept to explain an observation in your life, an historical event, a cultural norm or institution, a local/international problem, create a solution to an environmental issues, or to create a business opportunity?

Answer 1

Deidre McCloskey has presented the concept of 'Humanomics'. She has tried to explain the humanistic science related with the economics as humanities and economics are perceived as separate studies.

In economics the human predicates of feeling, wanting, thinking, and knowing have been boiled down to the single motivation of naked “self-interest.” There is a limited focus on the issues like justice, courage, faith, hope, and love as they are supposed to be covered seperately under humanities.

On the basis of statistics of US economy, she comes to a conclusion that, a major part of economy is based on persuasive "sweet talks". She emphasizes on interlinked and collective study of economics and sociology and history that acknowledges humans as speakers of meaning.

The thinking which prompted her to come up with this idea:

The importance of language in the
economy—its linguistic embeddedness as the sociologists would put it. Her point is to demonstrate that in the economy the force of language is not to be ignored. Ignoring the burden of art and literature and philosophy in thinking about the economy is strangely unscientific: it throws away, under
orders from a largely unargued law of method, a good deal of the evidence of our human lives. Thus "humanomics.”

The concept can be used to demonstrate that Humanomics is a restoration story that proposes that your humanity and your time are the only true assets you have. Focusing exclusively on economic growth in terms of capital and materialistic ambitions can fiercely backfire. For example, the hunger for industrial development in almost all nation states since advent of industrial revolution, has given birth to a completely new set of global challenges like climate change and global warming. Thus, proper balance between economics and humanitarian aspects related to it (humanomics), is the need of modern era.

Source:

A White Paper on “Humanomics” -
Deirdre N. McCloskey

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.deirdremccloskey.com/docs/humanomics.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwi62dD25dPqAhXPwjgGHSf8C5gQFjAAegQIBhAC&usg=AOvVaw30H45h1g5qE6cfudalHA3E