The Origin of Wealth: Evolution, Complexity, and the Radical Remaking of Economics

Front Cover
Harvard Business Press, 2006 - Business & Economics - 527 pages
Over 6.4 billion people participate in a $36.5 trillion global economy, designed and overseen by no one. How did this marvel of self-organized complexity evolve? How is wealth created within this system? And how can wealth be increased for the benefit of individuals, businesses, and society? In The Origin of Wealth, Eric D. Beinhocker argues that modern science provides a radical perspective on these age-old questions, with far-reaching implications. According to Beinhocker, wealth creation is the product of a simple but profoundly powerful evolutionary formula: differentiate, select, and amplify. In this view, the economy is a "complex adaptive system" in which physical technologies, social technologies, and business designs continuously interact to create novel products, new ideas, and increasing wealth. Taking readers on an entertaining journey through economic history, from the Stone Age to modern economy, Beinhocker explores how "complexity economics" provides provocative insights on issues ranging from creating adaptive organizations to the evolutionary workings of stock markets to new perspectives on government policies. A landmark book that shatters conventional economic theory, The Origin of Wealth will rewire our thinking about how we came to be here--and where we are going.
 

Contents

ONE The Question
3
Two Traditional Economics
21
THREE A Critique
45
Complexity Economics
77
FIVE Dynamics
99
SIX Agents
115
SEVEN Networks
141
NINE Evolution
187
THIRTEEN Economic Evolution
279
FOURTEEN A New Definition of Wealth
299
What It Means for Business and Society
321
SIXTEEN Organization
349
SEVENTEEN Finance
381
EIGHTEEN Politics and Policy
415
Notes
455
Bibliography
491

How Evolution Creates Wealth
219
ELEVEN Physical Technology
241
TWELVE Social Technology
261
Index
509
About the Author
527
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