Are we really able to come to key decisions on social issues through economics?

“I was late and had to decide quickly whether to put the car in a parking lot or risk getting a ticket for parking illegally on the street”. Funnily enough the context of this scenario many of us go through on a day to day basis. This illustrates one segment of Becker’s break down of looking at life economically which he dissects in to four parts. Discrimination against the minorities, Crime and punishment, Human capital and Formation, dissolution and structure of families, Becker central approach was to use economics to analyse social issues, different to the Marxian approach, “the economic approach I refer to does not assume that individuals are motivated solely by selfishness or gain.”

The 1950’s view that criminals were helpless “victims”

Observing societies views on criminals during the 1950’s and 60’s period, mental illness was seen as the reason to why an individual becomes a criminal in many cases through committing an act against the law. However, Becker investigated theoretical and empirical implications of the assumptions that criminal behaviour is rational. An individual uses one’s ability to analyse the benefits from the crime they may commit weighed against the punishments, they could receive with the probability of being caught. As Becker clearly introduces in the beginning of the chapter of “Crime and Punishment” with his example of the parking ticket. He himself commits a rational crime through economic reasoning. Although I would come to a conclusion to disagree with this and crime being such a broad topic. Many types of crime don’t take in to consideration financial benefit and can sometimes rather be pleasure, for example rape, it brings so financial pleasure, therefore the economic benefit of it is zero, but then one can still go on to commit the crime. Although at the same time with Becker’s example of a parking ticket, I would agree with the rational crime made where one weighs up the risk of getting caught with being late to University.

                                

Becker points seem quite simple and practical what’s the harm?

Becker proposes many valid arguments to analyse social issues through economics, alternatively

there can be dangers presented in this. In Becker’s breakdown of Formation, dissolution and structure of families, we should look through a “Lens of utility-maximising forward looking behaviour”. Therefore, marriage and children can be seen as an investment so when parents get old children take care of them. This is seen as a negative outlook to hold to social problems such as this. This being a non-economic problem it can be seen to take the raw essence of parenting and childhood from its form. Making everything economic adds to the idea of globalisation, although this is evident in some cultures it can be the total opposite in others. However, by standardising this and looking at it economically some may lose their cultural approaches to these problems. Regardless if you find his view on looking at life in an economic way, Gary Becker provides various observations that allow one to at least imagine and contemplate living life making decisions in an economic way.

Bibliography

The Economic Way of Looking at Life - Gary Becker

http://im-an-economist.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/in-memoriam-gary-becker.html