Consumers, investors, and corporations orient their activities toward a future that contains opportunities and risks. How do these actors assess uncertainty? Jens Beckert adds a new chapter to the theory of capitalism by showing how fictional expectations drive modern economies—or throw them into crisis when imagined futures fail to materialize.
The book explores the complex dynamics of wealth transfer across generations, addressing the tension between family solidarity and social inequality. It raises critical questions about the implications of inheritance on equal opportunity and democracy, examining how accumulated wealth can translate into political power. Through the lens of various disciplines, it invites readers to consider the ethical and societal ramifications of bequeathing wealth in contemporary society.
"Beyond the Market" launches a sociological investigation into economic efficiency. Prevailing economic theory, which explains efficiency using formalized rational choice models, often simplifies human behaviour to the point of distortion. Jens Beckert finds such theory to be particularly weak in explaining such crucial forms of economic behaviour as co-operation, innovation and action under conditions of uncertainty - phenomena he identifies as the proper starting point for a sociology of economic action