Trust
Many mainstream economists cling to the myth our economic progress can be attributed to our competitive free market capitalist system. The myth based on a Darwinian selfish gene model of human nature.
Free enterprise and market competition have many virtues. They encourage innovation, create choices, motivate us to improve our performance, and it provides a counterweight against the abuses of a monopoly in the marketplace.
A free market economy can also come to resemble a rigged game, where rich and powerful oligarchs write rules in their favor and crush upstart competitors. Government can come to resemble a handmaiden rather than a policeman or an honest broker. Customer preferences are manipulated in harmful, or even lethal ways.
A term, from the Depression, has come up. Animal spirits implies sometimes, quite irrational behavior can control market outcomes.
Two influences for consideration, a sense of fairness and trust.
Smoothly-operating markets depend on trust.
In small communities, trust is based on personal relationships. Many small towns still pride themselves on a greater sense of security. But in large impersonal cities many transactions between strangers, trust may depend on the reputation of a manufacturer and its brand, past experience with a product or service, advertising, endorsements by friends, celebrities, doctors, government regulations and consumer protections, warranties, or perhaps the reputation of a middle-man or retailer.
Trust is a fragile commodity. It can quickly dissipate by exploitative, dishonest, or unfair action.
Whole societies may differ significantly in a cultural bias toward social trust.
Surveys show, some 65 percent of Norwegians are predisposed to be trusting, while Peruvians trusting at only 5 percent. Distrust in that society is widespread. In our own society, the survey suggests social trust, trust in our government, could stand improvement.
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