Wednesday, November 18, 2020

The Average Human


                                                 “The Average Human”




The Average Human

Consider “The Average Human” to be the adult millennial child of the economic man. 

As we all know, humans have their minds consumed by many different things at once. 

Unlike the economic man, the average human has incentives other than money. The average human has children, pets, needs, and even wants. Like Raworth says in chapter 3 of Doughnut Economics “A new economic self-portrait must reflect the way that we see humanity’s place in the world.” This includes, as much as people may not want to admit, nonessential spending. According to USA Today, “the average adult in the USA spends $1,497 a month on nonessential items.” That is 26% of the average American’s monthly salary according to ZipRecruiter.

I believe that economics needs to be reformed to think about its participants in a way that is realistic and not hypothetical. Others have found fault with the “the economic man” idea. At a panel of economists, David Eastburn said, “I see this conflict not only within society but also within individuals.- Economic Man is at war with Social Man.” 


He also made a T-chart that showed the differences between the economic man and the social man (or the average human). His T-chart represents the stark difference of what the two models would prioritize and in turn what will influence them in the economy. For example, the economic man would rather produce goods and services quickly and in great amounts; where the average human would rather make a quality product that may have taken more time and care. 




             The economic man 

The social man (The average human) 

Production

Distribution 

Quantity 

Quality 

Goods and services 

People 

Money Values 

Human Values 

Work and discipline 

Self-realization

Competition 

Cooperation

 

This T-chart represents the stark difference of what the two models would prioritize and in turn what will influence them in the economy. The average human model should replace the economic man model because if we change the rigid model the people who do not fit the mold could be better suited in the economy. 



Citations 


Backman, Maurie. “You Don't Need That: Average American Spends Almost $18,000 a Year on Nonessentials.” USA Today, Gannett Satellite Information Network, 7 May 2019,

“Q: How Much Do Average Jobs Pay per Month in 2020?” ZipRecruiter

Raworth, Kate. Doughnut Economics: Seven Ways to Think Like a 21st-Century Economist. Random House Business Books, 2017. 

Thought Bubble by Alex Muravev from the Noun Project

Person by Valerie Lamm from the Noun Project






No comments:

Post a Comment

Frontiers

 Hello and welcome to my final action project for my STEAM class Frontiers. In this action project, we were asked to create a conference pos...