The ontology of Original Institutional Economics and Social Positioning Theory

Beliza Borba de Almeida and William Waller

Cambridge Journal of Economics, 2025, vol. 49, issue 6, 1469-1494

Abstract: Original Institutional Economics (OIE) begins with the work of Thorstein Veblen, who built on evolutionary theorizing to articulate a combined biological and social ontology. Human beings evolved as social animals with propensities that shaped human relations, but the dominant factor in the constitution of social relations was the development of culture, including language. William Dugger’s 1980 article on power introduced a framework for analysing institutions in clusters. While interesting for various reasons, we note that this aspect of his analysis lacks a theory of social constitution and a framework for systematically examining the internal structure of these clusters and accurately describing their interrelationships. We argue that Social Positioning Theory (SPT) can offer a theory of social constitution that aligns with Dugger’s framework and enriches the theory of power he articulates by considering power at all levels of society, not just within institutions.

Keywords: Original institutional economics; Social ontology; Social positioning theory; Thorstein Veblen; Power (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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