< Issue No. 15 (2020)Article
Pragmatism, Institutionalism, and Buddhism: Toward a Synthesis for Socially Engaged Buddhist Economics
Magnuson, Joel, Willamette University
Abstract
Socially engaged Buddhism addresses a wide range of contemporary social and environmental crises from a distinctively Buddhist perspective. Much of the emphasis on this approach is on changing individual habits of behaviour and less on changing social structures and even less on transforming economic systems that have come to be dominated by powerful corporate institutions. This paper contributes to the growing body of work on Buddhist economics with an emphasis on a critique of social atomism in standard economic, a holistic framework of analysis, and an emphasis on karma and economic change. The substance of this work draws from aspects of American pragmatism and institutional economics that have a particular affinity with Buddhist philosophy and practice. The ultimate aim is to contribute to a vision for Socially Engaged Buddhist Economics as its own school of economic thought.