When Money Changes Society

Classical sociology considered money as central to the functioning of modern society, relatingit to a progressive expansion of instrumental rationality and the emergence of weaker social ties.Modern money, the universal equivalent described by Simmel, facilitates theexchange of goods and values by providing a single unit of account. This frees people and thingsfrom traditional social ties and makes them free to sell their work and trade goods on markets thatincreasingly erode national borders. Modern money thus frees the individual from traditional socialties and facilitates the creation of ever larger and more inter-connected markets. Sardex money, onthe other hand, seems to work in the opposite direction: the weak social ties of ordinary economictransactions are replaced by strong ones, characterised by a high level of reciprocity and by an ethical code. Furthermore the movementof goods is restricted to the regional level and much isdone to promote economic exchanges between member companies.

The crisis of the financial system and the development of alternative currencies First scientific study about Sardex Theoretical and empirical approach

Autorentext

Giacomo Bazzani, Ph.D, works in the Department of Statistics, Computer Science, Applications "G. Parenti", University of Florence.

Inhalt
Introduction.- The Sardex experience.- Social mechanisms influenced by Sardex.- Conclusions. Appendix: Sampling and methodologies.