DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31063/AlterEconomics/2023.20-2.3
For citation:
Fedorov, K. Y. (2023). Theoretical Synthesis of the Institutional and Narrative Approaches in the Context of the Concept of Meme. AlterEconomics, 20(2), 329–347. https://doi.org/10.31063/AlterEconomics/2023.20-2.3
Abstract:
Human rationality has long been an important yet unresolved problem. Narrative and institutional economics, as well as the concept of memes, aim to rationalize the irrational. However, each approach faces challenges when trying to go beyond its traditional field of activity, resulting in fragmentation. The specificity of narrative and institutional economics also makes them unsuitable for creating a single, generalized theory of rationalization of the irrational. In contrast, memetics has the potential to produce such a theory. To further this potential, we propose to synthesize the narrative and institutional concepts into a more comprehensive meme concept. Narratives, when interpreted broadly, share characteristics with memes and can be included in the meme concept. Institutions are viewed as tools for disseminating and consolidating memes. Memes are propagated through both the verbal and mental activity of people, which comprises not only spoken language but also thought patterns, beliefs, elements of culture, including institutions. This unification offers a potentially productive theoretical framework for the rationalization of the irrational. By understanding how cultural patterns are formed, disseminated, and consolidated, we can gain a better understanding of human behavior and decision-making.
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