
The Asset Economy
Polity Press
1st Edition
Published on 24. September 2020
Book
Hardback
176 pages
978-1-5095-4345-8 (ISBN)
Description
Rising inequality is the defining feature of our age. With the lion's share of wealth growth going to the top, for a growing percentage of society a middle-class existence is out of reach. What exactly are the economic shifts that have driven the social transformations taking place in Anglo-capitalist societies?
In this timely book, Lisa Adkins, Melinda Cooper and Martijn Konings argue that the rise of the asset economy has produced a new logic of inequality. Several decades of property inflation have seen asset ownership overshadow employment as a determinant of class position. Exploring the impact of generational dynamics in this new class landscape, the book advances an original perspective on a range of phenomena that are widely debated but poorly understood - including the growth of wealth inequalities and precarity, the dynamics of urban property inflation, changes in fiscal and monetary policy and the predicament of the "millennial" generation. Despite widespread awareness of the harmful effects of Quantitative Easing and similar asset-supporting measures, we appear to have entered an era of policy "lock-in" that is responsible for a growing disconnect between popular expectations and institutional priorities. The resulting polarization underlies many of the volatile dynamics and rapidly shifting alliances that dominate today's headlines.
Reviews / Votes
"Adkins, Cooper and Konings make a timely and persuasive attack on generational and electoral understandings of contemporary class conflict and class reproduction. This is a must read for understanding the politics around the increasingly Minsky-like dynamics of the housing market."Herman Mark Schwartz, University of Virginia
"In teasing out the logic of the booming asset economy, Lisa Adkins and her co-authors brilliantly update the analysis of class and inequality for the twenty-first century. This outstanding book will prove a vital point of reference to academics, students, and the wider public."
Mike Savage, London School of Economics
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Oxford
United Kingdom
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Dimensions
Height: 218 mm
Width: 142 mm
Thickness: 15 mm
Weight
272 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-5095-4345-8 (9781509543458)
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Lisa Adkins | Melinda Cooper | Martijn Konings
The Asset Economy
E-Book
10/2020
1st Edition
Wiley
€15.99
Available for download

Lisa Adkins | Melinda Cooper | Martijn Konings
The Asset Economy
Book
09/2020
1st Edition
Polity Press
€19.00
Shipment within 15-20 days

Lisa Adkins | Melinda Cooper | Martijn Konings
The Asset Economy
E-Book
09/2020
1st Edition
Wiley
€15.99
Available for download
Persons
Lisa Adkins is Head of the School of Social and Political Sciences at the University of Sydney.
Melinda Cooper is Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Sydney.
Martijn Konings is Professor of Political Economy and Social Theory at the University of Sydney.
Content
1. Introduction
2. Asset Logics
3. The Making of the Asset Economy
4. New Class Realities
5. Conclusion
References