Inventing Value: The Social Construction of Monetary Worth

Value is a personal assessment of worth that draws on normative standards, which are formed, transformed, and supported by the construction of new social structures. This book examines how value is invented by value entrepreneurs in pursuit of their interests and provides a new basis for criticising the role of value in the commodity economy and finance sector.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 244 pages
Publication date: 21 March 2024
Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Value holds a pivotal position within the contemporary economy, yet the most widely accepted theories of value fail to provide a comprehensive understanding of its mechanisms and the ways in which it is exploited for financial gain. This book sets out to reconstruct the theory of value, proposing that it encompasses a subjective assessment of worth, albeit one that is heavily influenced by normative standards. The book delves into these standards, exploring their formation, transformation, and support through the construction of new social structures. The empirical evidence presented in the book stems from contemporary financial examples, including the mortgage-backed securities that contributed to the global financial crisis of 2008, the inflated valuations granted to so-called unicorn companies by venture capitalists, and the emergence of Bitcoin. Through this analysis, the book develops a novel theory that demonstrates how value is created by value entrepreneurs driven by their own interests, thus offering a fresh perspective for critiquing the role of value in the commodity economy and the financial sector.

ISBN-13: 9781009199322