Financialization of Values – An Institutional Anatomy of the Financial Crisis
Financialization of Values – An Institutional Anatomy of the Financial Crisis

Summary/Abstract: The institutional change that took place in the values underlying the global economic system brought enormous distress to global markets and societies. Both the data and the analyses demonstrated by numerous authors show that people’s perception of values has changed indeed. The drive towards profit maximization and increase in efficiency strengthened by a range of inherent in the Anglo-Saxon societies market conducive values like individualism, freedom, self-expression, stratification society severely undermined the values they societies cherished in the past. The change is possible yet we have to set the priorities and reassess what values should give momentum to our personal lives, societies and economy. A solution is return to the fundamental values like, e.g. good rela-tionships, cooperation, honesty, integrity, family [Dembinski, Beretta, 2014]. The change is possible if responsible and daring political decisions will be made: politics can change a culture and save it from itself [Harrison, 2006]. The problem is not a lack of awareness or knowledge to introduce the change but actually our own willingness to attempt for it. We know the ways and means. The real challenge is to step forward. A leap of faith?

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