How Our Identities Shape Our Work, Wages, And Well-Being

Introduction

The identity is the set of traits of an individual or a collective that differentiate it from others. It has begun to be studied by economists since the time when introduced as a variable or parameter in the utility function of the individual. The utility can be conceptualized as a measure of satisfaction. This satisfaction may come as a result of the increased wealth of the individual, increased consumption of goods and services.

Economic identity of the person is considered in connection with the investigation of economic status as the characteristics of the objective position of the person or group, self-esteem of man's material position as the psychological component of his economic consciousness and self-awareness.

Theme

The identity does not differentiate between wealth, consumption and time, it is intangible variable remain beyond the individual whether or not many material goods, whether rich or poor, eat much or little or extended vacation available or reduced.

This theory that is gaining popularity in recent years and that somehow extends the traditional arguments that describe the economic behavior of individuals.

Discussion and Analysis

Satisfaction measures mentioned (wealth, consumption and time) are not the only ones that affect the achievement of the full satisfaction of the individual, there are also intangible variables, such as identity, that will achieve that level of satisfaction (Savage, Pp. 176). In "Economy of Identity", George Akerlof and Rachel Kranton assured that what matters to people depends on their pattern of identity and concern for her. This case is illustrated by the example of another variable intangible justice. Leading economists argue that people care about being fair and be treated fairly. But in the real world, social context dependent. In many places seen as fair, and perhaps natural, treat others in a way that elsewhere is considered unfair and even cruel.

Anyone who feels identified with what he does have a greater incentive to reach the objectives, because act with a better attitude: the variable based on fitness remains constant, the increase of the variable attitude, which comes hand in hand with the ownership of the project value, with work, the company, the market or the company, will provide more efficient results. Because efficiency is to reduce the number of inputs (man-hours invested capital, raw materials) for a given level of outputs (profits, objectives met, products). A person identified in your project will print fewer hours in their realization.

Just as identity is a factor that can be found in microeconomics, we might find on a macroeconomic analysis, that is, one who studies the behavior of a society, seen as a whole. Work on identity factor achieved, also the creation of a collective consciousness and the realization of belonging to a particular group, society or nation.

Identity And The Economic Behaviour of Individuals

The book "Identity Economics", Akerlof and Kranton published in 2010 explains in a simple, intuitive and nothing formalized, the main ideas of this line of thought. In turn, the models are more formalized in other ...