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Where do prices come from? Sociological approaches to price formation

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  • Beckert, Jens

Abstract

The article provides an overview of the state of the art of sociological research on price formation. The dominant trait of the sociological approach to prices is to understand price formation not as the outcome of individual preferences but as the result of the social and political forces operating within the market field. The article proceeds from the concept of market fields and is organized around the three dominant approaches in economic sociology: the network approach, the institutional approach, and the cultural approach.

Suggested Citation

  • Beckert, Jens, 2011. "Where do prices come from? Sociological approaches to price formation," MPIfG Discussion Paper 11/3, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:mpifgd:113
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    Cited by:

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    4. Nouguez, Etienne, 2014. "Governing the market through prices: The state and controls on the price of medicines in France," economic sociology. perspectives and conversations, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies, vol. 15(2), pages 41-48.
    5. Degenshein, Anya, 2017. "Degenshein_Strategies of Valuation," OSF Preprints 6ka29, Center for Open Science.
    6. Kjellberg, Hans & Sjögren, Ebba & Krafve, Linus Johansson, 2023. "The functions of known to be inaccurate prices in markets: A cross-country comparison of pharmaceutical list pricing," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 167(C).
    7. Wang, Pengfei, 2019. "Price space and product demography: Evidence from the workstation industry, 1980–1996," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(9), pages 1-1.
    8. Chauvin, Pierre-Marie, 2013. "The social fabric of prices: Institutional factors and reputation work in the bordeaux wine futures campaign," economic sociology. perspectives and conversations, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies, vol. 15(1), pages 12-21.
    9. Cornelia Staritz & Bernhard Tröster & Jan Grumiller & Felix Maile, 2023. "Price-Setting Power in Global Value Chains: The Cases of Price Stabilisation in the Cocoa Sectors in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 35(4), pages 840-868, August.
    10. Leisenheimer, Luisa, 2022. "Prices behind electro-mobility: Contestation around and beyond price determination and setting in the lithium global production network and extraction in Chile," ÖFSE-Forum, Austrian Foundation for Development Research (ÖFSE), volume 85, number 85, Juni.
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    13. Tröster, Bernhard & Staritz, Cornelia & Grumiller, Jan & Maile, Felix, 2019. "Commodity dependence, global commodity chains, price volatility and financialisation: Price-setting and stabilisation in the cocoa sectors in Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana," Working Papers 62, Austrian Foundation for Development Research (ÖFSE).
    14. Kracman, Kimberly, 2022. "Code as constitution: The negotiation of a uniform accounting code for U.S. railway corporations and the moral justification of stakeholder claims on wealth," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    15. Jean Finez & Pierre Brasseur, 2020. "The economies of sexuality [Les économies de la sexualité]," Post-Print hal-03022199, HAL.
    16. Kemal Yaman & Kemal Er & Emine Ozlem Koroglu, 2016. "Importance of Pricing for Hospitals¡¯ Expenses from Financial and Social Perspectives," International Journal of Economics and Finance, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 8(9), pages 78-90, September.
    17. Anna Szczepańska-Przekota, 2023. "Are Small Agricultural Markets Recipients of World Prices? The Case of Poland," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-16, June.
    18. Reinke, Rouven, 2021. "Das Verhältnis von neuer Wirtschaftssoziologie und moderner Volkswirtschaftslehre: Möglichkeiten und Grenzen einer soziologischen Kritik am (neoklassischen) Mainstream," ZÖSS-Discussion Papers 83, University of Hamburg, Centre for Economic and Sociological Studies (CESS/ZÖSS).
    19. Heeyon Kim & Bo Kyung Kim, 2022. "To be in Vogue: How mere proximity to high‐status neighbors affects aspirational pricing in the U.S. fashion industry," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(6), pages 1208-1230, June.
    20. Wilkinson, John, 2019. "An overview of German new economic sociology and the contribution of the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies," MPIfG Discussion Paper 19/3, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies.
    21. Staritz, Cornelia & Tröster, Bernhard & Wojewska, Aleksandra, 2023. "Price-making in mineral provisioning systems and social-ecological transformation? The cases of copper, cobalt and lithium," Working Papers 74, Austrian Foundation for Development Research (ÖFSE).
    22. Yuliang Cao & Muhammad Mohiuddin, 2019. "Sustainable Emerging Country Agro-Food Supply Chains: Fresh Vegetable Price Formation Mechanisms in Rural China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(10), pages 1-14, May.
    23. Mangku Purnomo & Fenna Otten & Heiko Faust, 2018. "Indonesian Traditional Market Flexibility Amidst State Promoted Market Competition," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 7(11), pages 1-17, November.
    24. Shailendra Gurjar & Usha Ananthakumar, 2023. "The economics of art: price determinants and returns on investment in Indian paintings," International Journal of Social Economics, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 50(6), pages 839-859, January.

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