Everything for Sale: New Markets

Part I of Social Economics closes with a consideration of the implications of extending market principles to an ever-wider array of life. A market for human kidneys provides a clear illustration of the potential pitfalls of adoption of market principles long advocated by many economists. How far should market principles extend? Should we put a price—a dollar value—on human kidneys? What are the implications of doing so? Harvard ethicist Michael Sandel argues that market decisions cannot be separated from moral decisions. Three primary concerns with new markets, broadly categorized as: (1) objectification/commodification, (2) coercion, and (3) slippery slope. Each is discussed in detail, from the perspectives of economists and ethicists. Despite the potential pitfalls, the encroachment of markets into heretofore unchartered areas continues. With each, we must consider more than simply “Will markets work?” and “Are markets more efficient?” in some narrow sense. Because markets can erode moral and civic values, we need a public debate about where markets belong and where they don’t belong. The question is pertinent to proposed markets, but we can also ask these same questions of some existing markets; several examples have been provided in this chapter.