GIFT-GIVING OR MARKET?

Philippe Steiner

Journal of Cultural Economy, 2010, vol. 3, issue 2, 243-259

Abstract: Human body parts (HBP) are made available to professionals either through market relations or through gift-giving. Market transactions were made legal in Iran during the 1980s; but this solution did not spread to the rest of the world. Nevertheless, the mere existence of a possible alternative to the current policy in favor of gift-giving opens up a political issue: are market relations legitimate and efficient in the domain of organ procurement? Once so stated, the question becomes: are economists able to perform such commerce as just another form of market relations? After a discussion of Michel Callon's theory of performativity, justifying the use of a restricted definition of performativity, the paper examines Alvin Roth's suggestion that a computerized matching market for non-compatible pairs of donor-recipient be created, and explains why this is a consistent example of performativity of gift-giving.

Date: 2010
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DOI: 10.1080/17530350.2010.494374

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