Download pdf
Economic Decisions and Cultural Trauma: A Sociological Exploration of Macro-level Policies and Societal Perceptions
- 1 University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, United Kindom
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
The article delves into the intricate relationship between macroeconomic policies and cultural trauma. It argues that economic decisions, typically confined to corporate and legislative realms, significantly impact communities by shaping collective memories, identities, and psychological distress. The study highlights historical events like The Great Depression and the COVID-19 pandemic, underscoring their transformative impacts on societal consciousness and cultural narratives. The article emphasizes the role of macroeconomic choices, such as fiscal policies and trade agreements, in creating collective experiences that transcend economic outcomes. Using examples like trade liberalization in Brazil, it demonstrates how economic policies can lead to diverse societal perceptions and narratives. The article also examines the role of media, public discourse, and societal leaders in shaping public perceptions of these decisions. Central to the study are the contributions of cultural sociologists like Jeffrey C. Alexander, who propose that cultural trauma arises more from societal narratives around an event rather than the event itself. The study stresses the need for a comprehensive approach that integrates economic analysis with sociological insights, highlighting the importance of understanding economic decisions beyond their immediate financial implications. Conclusively, the article posits that macroeconomic decisions have profound and lasting impacts on societies, influencing collective identities and memories. It advocates for policies and scholarly approaches that acknowledge the broader societal ramifications of these decisions.
Keywords
Macroeconomic Policies, Cultural Trauma, Sociology
[1]. Watson, M.F., Bacigalupe, G., Daneshpour, M., Han, W.-J. and Parra-Cardona, R. (2020), COVID-19 Interconnectedness: Health Inequity, the Climate Crisis, and Collective Trauma. Fam. Proc., 59: 832-846. https://doi.org/10.1111/famp.12572
[2]. Alexander, J. C., Eyerman, R., Giesen, B., Smelser, N. J., & Sztompka, P. (2004). Cultural trauma and collective identity. Univ of California Press.
[3]. Ferreira, F. H., Leite, P. G., & Wai-Poi, M. (2007). Trade liberalization, employment flows, and wage inequality in Brazil. World Bank Policy Research Working Paper, (4108).
[4]. Dursun Peksen, Timothy M. Peterson, A. Cooper Drury, Media-driven Humanitarianism? News Media Coverage of Human Rights Abuses and the Use of Economic Sanctions, International Studies Quarterly, Volume 58, Issue 4, December 2014, Pages 855–866, https://doi.org/10.1111/isqu.12136
[5]. Alexander, J. C., Eyerman, R., Giesen, B., Smelser, N. J., & Sztompka, P. (2004). Cultural trauma and collective identity. Univ of California Press.
[6]. Dreze, J., & Sen, A. (1999). India: Economic development and social opportunity. OUP Catalogue.
[7]. Soroka, S., Fournier, P., & Nir, L. (2019). Cross-national evidence of a negativity bias in psychophysiological reactions to news. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(38), 18888-18892.
[8]. Hobolt, S. B. (2016). The Brexit vote: a divided nation, a divided continent. Journal of European public policy, 23(9), 1259-1277.
[9]. Corsetti, G., Pesenti, P., & Roubini, N. (1999). What caused the Asian currency and financial crisis?. Japan and the world economy, 11(3), 305-373.
[10]. Pepinsky, T. B. (2009). Economic crises and the breakdown of authoritarian regimes: Indonesia and Malaysia in comparative perspective. Cambridge University Press.
[11]. Eyerman, R. (2001). Cultural trauma: Slavery and the formation of African American identity. Cambridge University Press.
[12]. Smelser, N. J. (2013). Theory of collective behaviour. Routledge.
Cite this article
Tang,Y. (2024). Economic Decisions and Cultural Trauma: A Sociological Exploration of Macro-level Policies and Societal Perceptions. Advances in Economics, Management and Political Sciences,112,19-25.
Data availability
The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study will be available from the authors upon reasonable request.
Disclaimer/Publisher's Note
The statements, opinions and data contained in all publications are solely those of the individual author(s) and contributor(s) and not of EWA Publishing and/or the editor(s). EWA Publishing and/or the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to people or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content.
About volume
Volume title: Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Economic Management and Green Development
© 2024 by the author(s). Licensee EWA Publishing, Oxford, UK. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and
conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license. Authors who
publish this series agree to the following terms:
1. Authors retain copyright and grant the series right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this
series.
2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the series's published
version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial
publication in this series.
3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and
during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See
Open access policy for details).