Understanding the Creative Economy and the Future of Employment

ISBN-13: 9789811516511 / Angielski / Twarda / 2020 / 191 str.

Jorge Eduardo Fernandez-Pol; Charles Harvie

Spis treści

Chapter 1 A Bird’s-eye View of the Economy and Economics  Concise Preview  1 1. What is an Economy?  2 2. What is Economics?  5 3. Guiding Insights  10 4. Economic Predictions  11 Chapter Summary  12 Appendix A: Innovation as a Problem Area of Economics  14 Appendix B: The Invisible Hand and Innovation  17 

Chapter 2 What a Creative Economy Is and How It Works Concise Preview  21 1. Introduction  22 2. Defining Characteristics of a Creative Economy  22 3. A Narrative Model of Economic Evolution  24 4. Innovation as an Economic Activity: A Three-dimensional Model  26 5. The Essentials of a Creative Economy: Ideas and Human Capital  27 6. The Mechanics of a Creative Economy  29 Chapter Summary  31 Appendix C: Ideas and Human Capital as Economic Products  33 Appendix D: Creative Economy and Endogenous Growth Theory  38

Chapter 3 Creativity and Intellectual Property Concise Preview  43 1. Introduction  44 2. Creative Thinking  44 3. Intellectual Property  48 Chapter Summary  56 Appendix E: Further Aspects on Creative Thinking  59 Appendix F: Further Aspects on Intellectual Property  62 

Chapter 4 Innovation Environment Concise Preview  65 1. Introduction 66 2. Innovation Infrastructure  66 3. Clusters  67 4. Competitive Advantage: Domestic and International 70 viii 

5. Venture Capital  70 Chapter Summary  74 Appendix G: Miscellaneous Points on the Innovation Environment  79 

Chapter 5 Microeconomic Aspects of Innovation Concise Preview  83 1. Introduction  84 2. Innovation Process and Related Terminology  85 3. The Innovator’s Dilemma  90 4. Fast Innovation Approach  93 Chapter Summary  94 Appendix H: Business Innovation and Social Innovation  97 

Chapter 6 Looking to the Near Future Concise Preview  101 1. Introduction  102 2. Historical Perspective  103 3. Human Replacement  105 4. Robots: Friends or Foes?  109 5. The Future of Employment: Anticipation Exercises  113 6. Rational Response to the March of Robots  116 Chapter Summary  119 Appendix I: Expert Opinions in Australia and the US  120 

Chapter 7 Looking to the Distant Future Concise Preview  125 1. Introduction  126 2. Technological Unemployment Revisited  127 3. Demarcating the Notion of a Robot Economy  132 4. Is the Robot Economy Near?  135 5. The Robot Economy Paradox  137 6. Schumpeter’s Famous Prophesy  141 Chapter Summary  143 Appendix J: Technological Progress in the 21st Century  146 Appendix K: The Technological Singularity and the Paradox  152

O autorze

Eduardo Pol is a Doctor in Economic Sciences (PhD equivalent) from the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina and has past publication success. His complete name is Jorge Eduardo Fernandez-Pol. Doctor Eduardo Pol is a Senior Lecturer in Economics in the Economics Discipline in the Faculty of Business, University of Wollongong, Australia. He is a member of the National Academy of Economic Sciences (Argentina). His research is focused on innovation as an economic activity.

Charles Harvie is an Associate Professor in the Economics Discipline in the Faculty of Business, University of Wollongong, Australia. Professor Harvie holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Warwick, UK. He is currently the Head of the School of Accountancy, Economics and Finance and co-Director of his Faculty’s Centre for Contemporary Australasian Business and Economics Studies. His research is focused on SMEs, entrepreneurship and economic development.

Blurb

The motivation of this book is simple, yet fundamental: No complete understanding of the modern economy is possible without a thorough grounding in the field of innovation as an economic activity.

The book, as its title emphasizes, aims at helping readers to gain a comprehension of two inextricably linked issues:  challenging innovation and the future of human work. To this end, the book integrates a triad of topics: innovation as an economic activity, modus operandi of an innovation-driven economy, and the persistent progression toward automation of human jobs.

The main message conveyed by this book is that a creative economy will converge to an economy governed by smart machines aka robots, but will produce benefits if addressed in a rational manner.

As to the salient features of this book, 

• Accessibility: Accessible to readers with only cursory knowledge (if any) in economics
• Style: Adherence to a discursive, non-mathematical style
• Brevity: Covers material in a succinct, easily understandable manner, drawing upon real world examples
• Appendices: Each chapter is supplemented with appendices that elaborate upon pertinent real world examples and applications
• Self-contained: All the key concepts are defined and exemplified within the book
• Applicability: Uses examples that resonate with a wide audience of readers concerned about the advance of robots
• Non-mathematical diagrams: Provides accessible and readily understandable figures/graphs
• Protective stance: Contains a rational response to the march of the robots which is useful for workers of all ages