Social Movements and the Creation of Moral Markets

• In Event: 355 - Section on Economic Sociology Roundtable Session (one-hour).
  In Refereed Roundtable: Table 13. Varieties of Moral Markets

Abstract

The creation of moral markets force scholars and managers alike to grapple with many important questions: How do social values become inculcated in markets? Which social values win out? How does the introduction of social values change a market? What are the social and economic consequences? Economic sociologists are only beginning to pay attention to such questions. To contribute to this line of inquiry, this chapter examines the brief history of a relatively small social movement—the Circuit Riders—that created a moral market for technology services in the nonprofit sector. By focusing on a single movement, this chapter explicitly traces the process by which a social movement can imbue a market and organizations with social values—and how such activism can lead to unintended consequences.

Author

• Paul-Brian McInerney, University of Illinois-Chicago