Abstract
Although the conflict between capitalism and socialism has diminished since the end of the Cold War, capitalism has yet to, as scholar Francis Fukuyama stated, reach the final victory. On the contrary, after the U.S. subprime mortgage crisis triggered the global financial crisis, defects of capitalism, such as the problem of development cost attribution and distribution, gradually emerged. In capitalist competition, substantial profits are obtained from various technological advances to create so called high-tech products. However, from the ”risk society theory” perspective, although scientific and technological innovations can foster the prosperous development of an economy, the long-term effects on human development (whether helpful or harmful) are unclear. The contradictions in these two types of thinking result in a fundamental paradox: an imbalance in cost attributions, with the profits of technology and intellectual products being exclusively owned by the inventor. However, because of the potential side-effect and unexpected issues caused by the product, the cost is often passed on to the government and society. Therefore, how effectively governments, society, and business conduct a reasonable distribution of cost burden is the focus of this research. The findings of this study are as follows: (a) When risk factors are introduced and the cost of potential negative impacts on economic development is absorbed by society, a lack of political trust and an economic crisis may ensue. Consequently, the original economic development is disrupted. (b) To effectively return the cost and burden of risk to the manufacturer, promoting legislation (that holds companies ”accountable by law”) through the cooperation of community and elected officials is the most appropriate response to the problem.
Translated title of the contribution | Paradox of Cost Attribution in Capitalist Economic Development: From the Aspect of Risk Society Accountability |
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Original language | Chinese (Traditional) |
Pages (from-to) | 1-15 |
Number of pages | 15 |
Journal | 人文暨社會科學期刊 = Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences |
Volume | 7 |
Issue number | 2 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2011 Dec 1 |