Term
| Explain the different ways capitalists can increase exploitation (*extend the XB portion of the day)? |
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Definition
1. absolute surplus value
2. relative surplus value |
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Term
| What is absolute surplus value? |
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Definition
| Absolute surplus value is the surplus value generated by increasing the length of the work day, thus increasing the surplus labor time. |
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Term
| What is relative surplus value? |
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Definition
| Relative surplus value is the surplus value generated by cutting wages or reducing the cost of living, thus reducing workers’ necessary labor time. |
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Term
| List the ways to shorten the time it takes workers to produce the equivalent of their own value. |
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Definition
1. increase the productivity of labor (using technology and hiring managers to squeeze more out of workers.
2. find cheaper sources of labor and/or making existing labor more docile (cutbacks, casualization, or capital mobility) |
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Term
| Why have some of the changes seen in the late 20th century such as the microchip revolution and the geographic movement of jobs to the sunbelt, the suburbs, and overseas occured? |
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Definition
| The desire to change the XB portion of the day. |
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Term
How does the microchip revolution effect XB?
A) shift XB out
B) move X to the left |
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Definition
| B) move X to the left...this is an increase in the productivity of labor |
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Term
| What is the role of government according to political economy theory on capitalist society? |
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Definition
| Role of the government is to provide the conditions necessary for the existence of capitalism. This recognizes boom-bust cycles of the economy and the detrimental effects these cycles can have on the working and lower classes, and stabilization. |
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Term
| According to political economy, what is a positive statement? |
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Definition
| what the capitalist state or government actually does |
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Term
| According to political economy, what is a normative statement? |
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Definition
| what ought to be the government's role |
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Term
| What is instrumentalists' view on the role of government in political economy theory? |
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Definition
| Instrumentalists see the state as an organ serving capitalists. |
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Term
| What is the structuralists' view on the political economy theory on the role of government? |
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Definition
| Structuralists see the state as an autonomous actor. |
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Term
| What is a common view of both the structuralists' and instrumenalists' view on political economy theory regarding the role of government? |
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Definition
| Both view the state as having a legitimation (provides services to help prevent system challenges) and a expenditure role (supplies items of collective consumption). |
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Term
| What are some political/policy actions that have been taken or can be taken to address exploitation? |
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Definition
| Capitalist exploitation has been challenged through social movements such as the labor movement, as well as other social movements such as the civil rights movement, women’s rights movement, and many others to help empower communities and challenge the capitalist system. |
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Term
| Compare what could be done in our society by government or other actors, according to political economy theory and neoclassical theory? |
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Definition
Neoclassical theory utilizes allocation, stabilization, and redistribution from a mathematical perspective.
Political economy theory utilizes movements and processes to change the existing patterns of relations. |
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Term
| Why have policy makers moved from a regulatory approach toward a more market-based approach in terms of government intervention in the economy? |
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Definition
The shift to a market-based approach has been to create an alternative solution to address externalities. Taxes, subsidies, and grants don’t always resolve what they are intended to, nor do they always reach (or not impose a burden on) those they are intended to, which was the basis of a regulatory approach.
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Term
| What are the criticisms of the regulatory approach to government economic policy? |
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Definition
1. Taxation of externalities is too crude of an intrument to have the precise effects it aims to have (criticism focuses on mechanics of precisely predicting the appropriate intervention).
2. Public Choice theory argues that it might lead to regulatory capture, where they assume that government is composed of self-interested actors. |
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Term
| What are the criticisms of the market based approach to government economic policy? |
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Definition
1. Market based approaches are still subject to regulatory capture as government sets theh level.
2. Market based approaches often draw upon cost-benefit analyses, which poses many problems.
3. Market based approaches can provide an unfair market advantage to larger companies.
4. Market based approaches further inequality, leaving less-powerful groups as a disadvantage. |
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Term
| What is an example of the regulatory approach to government economic policy? |
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Definition
| The regulatory approach sets limits on each factory or industry on how much pollution can be created and taxes, fines (or otherwise penalizes) if those limits are not met. |
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Term
| What is an example of the market based approach to government? |
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Definition
The market-based approach would advocate for a pollution trading market, meaning that the government would use a type of cost benefit analysis to determine the optimal level of pollution, based on the total damage costs and abatement costs were least.
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