Relationship Economics

In a 24/7 world and a global economy, there is no doubt that relationships impact virtually every economic transaction. In Relationship Economics, Lindon Robison and Bryan Ritchie argue that what needs to be understood is not just whether relationships matter (which, of course, they do), but also, how much, and in what circumstances they should matter. Providing a rigorous and measurable definition of the way that relationships among individuals create a capital, social capital, that can be saved, spent, and used like other forms of capital, Robison and Ritchie use numerous examples and insightful analysis, to explain how social capital shapes our ability to reduce poverty, understand corruption, encourage democracy, facilitate income equality, and respond to globalization. The first part of the book explains how social capital can be manipulated, stored, expended, and invested. The second part explores how levels of social capital within relationships influence economic transactions both positively and negatively, which in turn shape poverty levels, economic efficiency, levels and types of political participation, and institutional structures.

Professor Lindon Robison is a member of faculty at the Department of Agriculture, Food and Resource Economics at Michigan State University, USA. He holds degrees from Utah State University and the University of Illinois and a Ph.D. from Texas A&M University. He has worked for the US Government as an agricultural economist and has been a member of visiting faculty at Brigham Young University and the University of Minnesota, US and at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences in Uppsala. Professor Robison has won many academic awards, served on numerous research committees and editorial boards, consulted widely, and authored numerous journal articles, reports, book chapters and books.. Dr. Bryan Ritchie is Associate Professor of International Relations at James Madison College, Michigan State University, and Associate Director for External Strategy at the Office of Bio-based Technology and Office of Research and Graduate Studies. He is a Co-Director of the Michigan Center for Innovation and Economic Prosperity. Dr Ritchie holds a Bachelors degree from the University of Nevada, an MBA from the Marriott School, Brigham Young University, and a PhD. in political science from Emory University, all in the US. He is a member of the Editorial Board for the Journal of Asian Business. Dr Ritchie has received many awards and fellowships and has been widely published. He is an entrepreneur, starting and running several high-tech companies and consults on political economy to US Naval operations.