The Economic Psychology of Gabriel Tarde: Something new for behavioral economics?

Authors

  • Ivan Ajdukovic CEREN, EA 7477, Burgundy School of Business - Universit ´e Bourgogne Franche-Comt´e
  • Sylvain Max CEREN, EA 7477, Burgundy School of Business - Universit ´e Bourgogne Franche-Comté
  • Rodolphe Perchot CEREN, EA 7477, Burgundy School of Business - Universit ´e Bourgogne Franche-Comt´e
  • Eli Spiegelman CEREN, EA 7477, Burgundy School of Business - Universit ´e Bourgogne Franche-Comté

Keywords:

economic psychology, imitation, Tarde, big data, social media

Abstract

In the last years of the 19th Century, Gabriel Tarde developed a theory of economic psychology based on
interpersonal transmission of subjective values and beliefs. While his work has several aspects that resonate
with behavioral economics as practiced today, its differences are profound. His interest in dynamics of change,
and in particular in the role of innovation and invention in driving this process, is hard to fit into a behavioral
economics framework. However, new empirical techniques leveraging social media and big data seem well
suited to addressing his themes.

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Published

2024-09-20

Issue

Vol. 2 No. 1 (2018): Journal of Behavioral Economics for Policy

Section

Articles