Public Goods and the Fourth Industrial Revolution: Inclusive Models of Finance, Distribution and Production

The fourth industrial revolution will cause significant technological, economic, social, and environmental changes that will alter the state's role in meeting social needs. Industry 4.0 will also change the type, nature, and scope of public goods and how they are produced, financed, delivered, and consumed. This book proposes a model of production and distribution of public goods that acknowledges the participation of entities from the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. It assumes shared responsibility, subsidiarity, and paternalistic libertarianism and allows the state to create new entities of an educational or fiscal nature while remaining the regulator of public services and distribution.

Format: Hardback
Length: 256 pages
Publication date: 15 June 2022
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

The advent of the fourth industrial revolution, marked by the pervasive influence of digitization, artificial intelligence, and augmented reality, alongside significant megatrends such as globalization, urbanization, demographic shifts, and the emergence of the knowledge-based economy, is poised to usher in a series of transformative technological, economic, social, and environmental changes that will irrevocably alter the role of the state in addressing societal needs. This transformative era, often referred to as Industry 4.0, will also reshape the nature, type, and scope of public goods, as well as the mechanisms through which they are produced, financed, delivered, and consumed.

In this groundbreaking book, the authors redefine the existing paradigm of public goods by proposing a novel model of production and distribution that recognizes the active participation of entities from the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. The authors argue that these entities should be involved in the entire lifecycle of public goods, from their production to financing, distribution, and consumption. By expanding the traditional state-market dichotomy with the inclusion of citizens and new entities, the authors offer a fresh conceptualization and approach to public goods.

The proposed model embraces shared responsibility, subsidiarity, and paternalistic libertarianism, allowing the state to create new entities of an educational or fiscal nature while maintaining its regulatory role in public services and distribution. Furthermore, the book delves into the changes in the perception of public goods during the fourth industrial revolution across various sectors, including healthcare, pension systems, education, local public goods, and public utility services.

This comprehensive and insightful book is designed to appeal to a wide audience, including researchers, scholars, and students across social and technical sciences. It serves as a valuable resource for central and local administration bodies seeking to navigate the complexities of the evolving public goods landscape. By exploring the intersection of technology, economics, society, and the environment, this book offers valuable insights into the future of public goods and the role of the state in shaping a more inclusive and sustainable society.

Dimension: 234 x 156 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781032228990