Identity Economics

the book's message in mind: identity matters."--ForeWord "[A] lucid look at how social considerations carry economic consequences... The authors use the word 'identity' as shorthand for the way people divide themselves into social groups, each of which--like high-school Jocks and Burnouts--has a sense of how to behave."--James Pressley, Bloomberg News "The essence of the book is to place social contexts at the heart of an individual's decision-making. Tastes vary with social context, and concepts such as identity and norms influence the outcome."--Mint "This is a completely new idea, which, in essence, says that one effect of being in an increasingly liberal and affluent society is that aspects of identity that previously didn't seem to matter much to economists are consciously influencing our behaviour."--Trevor Phillips, Prospect "[Akerlof and Kranton] present the material in a very readable and entertaining way. Their findings are that economic behavior is governed by one's social category, by the norms of that social assignment, and by how one views one's identity in that social context."--Choice "[B]y the end of the book, my overwhelming feeling was that the authors had made a pretty robust case for why our profession should pay greater attention to the social structures that underpin our economic decisions. For this, they should be highly commended."--Samuel Tombs, Business Economist "Identity Economics provides the broader, better vision that we need."--New Economy "The book provides a solid basis for a plethora of future research, especially in the field of behavioural economics... Identity economics is a step forward, progressing economic theory and understanding a little further along the path from Homo economicus to Homo sapiens."--David A. Savage, The Economic Record "Akerlof is one of the most imaginative thinkers in neoclassical economics, and his earlier work on information economics essentially sparked off a revolution which dramatically changed the nature of the subject. Any work by him is worth pursuing."--Priyodorshi Banerjee, Economic & Political Weekly "Identity Economics marks a very significant contribution to the ever-growing economic literature incorporating nonmonetary motives to explain behavior and as such it is highly recommended reading for social scientists."--Andreas P. Kyriacou, Public Choice "This book is a must read for any social scientist whose interests lie in the intersection of economic analysis and real-world context and situations. While decidedly a trade book, the substantial list of references and strong foundations in the economics literature provide further reading for those who may be more mathematically inclined. Overall, the book was an interesting and informative read providing a framework for analysis not usually offered elsewhere."--Gabriel R. Serna, Journal of Economic Issues