The Social Function, the Being Function

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The social function, the being function fundamentally penetrates into how we value goods and services. Most economic decision making comes from this social dimension that doesn't lend itself very easily to mathematical modeling. I think as we become more materially prosperous, more and more of our economy is going to be driven by spirit rather than appetite. And I think we're already in a somewhat post scarcity world in some sense.

When the 20-year-old overachiever Johnathan Bi's first startup crashed and burned, he headed to a Zen retreat in the Catskills to "debug himself." He discovered René Girard and his mimetic theory--the idea that imitation is a key and often unconscious driver of human behavior. Listen as entrepreneur and philosopher Bi shares with EconTalk host Russ Roberts what he learned from Girard and Girard's insights into how we meet our primal need for money, fame, and power. The conversation includes the contrasts between economics and Girard's perspective.