Psychoeconomics: globalization, markets, crisis - стр. 43
When the rate of GNP growth is declining, in periods of downward mobility of not only the large number of unemployed, but also strong, capable and distinguished individuals who are able to unite in protest, it is no longer possible to restrain the society within accepted social boundaries and norms without targeted work with such people.
In this regard, the experience of the Middle Ages is instructive. Why? At that time, competition between specific individuals had not yet led to a natural attainment of balance between the social and social-psychological structures of the society, as this began to happen in capitalist society at the moment of its origin. But today the competition between individual people no longer allows the strong and capable to occupy higher places in the social structure. Still such competition remains and will remain for a long time, if not forever, an important factor in the struggle between individual corporations, groups of people, social strata, and between indivduals where it is effective and can differentiate them according to their abilities.
The causes for the decline in the role and significance of competition between individuals given their economic and social mobility in a period of globalization are multifactorial. Some of them are:
– The financial sector was “victorious” over the manufacturing sector. Profit margins in the financial sphere are much higher than in the manufacturing arena. It is almost impossible to find an area of production where it is possible to take out a loan for development with hope of returning it. However strong, smart or active the individual is, the probability of setting up successful new manufacturing in the current environment is minimal. One may try to speculate in the financial markets. But when they fall, even this possibility dies.
– For organizing new, more effective production, more and more financial resources are needed. The volume and level of minimal capital for starting one’s own business become even greater when there is an increase in the economic disparity between people. Therefore, with each year it becomes more difficult to start a business.
– The middle class is being ruined, and this was the traditional source of managers, leaders, and effective owners of big business. But only the strong, capable and smart are able to compete successfully with each other for the country.
– In a period of crisis and high unemployment, it is increasingly difficult for individuals to look forward to success in providing for their families. Businesses, especially small and medium-sized ones, are disappearing faster than they are being created. Unemployment has become chronic. And this means the quality of population and of workers will fall, and this quality is critical for creating a modern business “from scratch”.