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What We Owe Each Other: A New Social Contract
Brought to you by Penguin.
One of the world's most influential economists sets out the basis for a new social contract fit for the 21st century.
The social contract shapes our political institutions, legal systems and material conditions, but also the organisation of family and community, our well-being, relationships and life prospects. And yet everywhere, the social contract is failing.
Accelerating changes in technology, demography and climate will reshape our world in ways many of us have yet to grasp. In this landmark study, Minouche Shafik, director of the London School of Economics, draws on evidence from across the globe to identify the key principles every society must adopt if it is to meet the challenges of the coming century, with profound implications for gender equality, education, healthcare provision, the role of business and the future of work.
How should society pool risks, share resources and balance individual with collective responsibility? Brilliantly lucid and accessible, What We Owe Each Other offers new answers to these age-old questions and equips every listener to understand and play their part in the urgent and necessary transformation ahead.
One of the world's most influential economists sets out the basis for a new social contract fit for the 21st century.
The social contract shapes our political institutions, legal systems and material conditions, but also the organisation of family and community, our well-being, relationships and life prospects. And yet everywhere, the social contract is failing.
Accelerating changes in technology, demography and climate will reshape our world in ways many of us have yet to grasp. In this landmark study, Minouche Shafik, director of the London School of Economics, draws on evidence from across the globe to identify the key principles every society must adopt if it is to meet the challenges of the coming century, with profound implications for gender equality, education, healthcare provision, the role of business and the future of work.
How should society pool risks, share resources and balance individual with collective responsibility? Brilliantly lucid and accessible, What We Owe Each Other offers new answers to these age-old questions and equips every listener to understand and play their part in the urgent and necessary transformation ahead.
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First published April 27, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 149 reviews
May 2, 2021
This non-fiction title brought together numerous sources and collected data, which together allowed the reader to understand why our current societies are failing and to view a proposed vision of the future in which they, and the individuals within them, thrive.
The introduction sold me on this book's contents and it proved to be my favourite part of this book. Each following chapter provided an in-depth insight to each social matter it had touched upon and it proved a little repetitive, especially when some of the numbers or details of what was proposed became lost to me as I moved onto the next section. I appreciated Shafik's desire for change and understood the alterations stated, however, I ultimately found that the book's general overview sold me but, unfortunately, that I would rather have ingested the information in a single essay, podcast, or video format, instead of throughout a full book's length.
The introduction sold me on this book's contents and it proved to be my favourite part of this book. Each following chapter provided an in-depth insight to each social matter it had touched upon and it proved a little repetitive, especially when some of the numbers or details of what was proposed became lost to me as I moved onto the next section. I appreciated Shafik's desire for change and understood the alterations stated, however, I ultimately found that the book's general overview sold me but, unfortunately, that I would rather have ingested the information in a single essay, podcast, or video format, instead of throughout a full book's length.
July 4, 2021
Shafik encaptures with statistics the current ailments of global society; although nothing an informed reader wouldn't already know. Well written and laid out, but no new novel ideas. Essentially, she argues for an exportation of the current UK system, so maybe as a Brit I'm not the intended audience? It's written from a highly London, UK (Read - LSE) centric perspective (Which isn't a judgement of relevance). Very much a mixed bag.
A summary of salient points/arguments for my own notes, paraphrased and added upon;
Work
- Welfare state about ‘evening out’ consumption over whole life, not rich giving to poor.
- Ban ‘zero hour’ contracts and instead legislate ‘minimum paid hours’?
o 3% working pop UK in these contracts.
o Companies outsource to get around this, rise in 'third-party contractors'.
o 7% of UK pop in gig work.
- UBI doesn’t lead to more jobs (shown to not work).
- AI – creativity, emotional intelligence, ability to work with people will remain valued and needed skills.
- Manufacturing jobs raise lower paid workers to middle class?
Climate Change
- 1C rise on industrial temps already.
- 80% forest cover already lost globally.
- 6-12m hectares lost of agricultural land each annum.
- 50% of the world’s wildlife lost in last 40 yrs.
- Unsustainable overfishing spread to over 33% of the world’s fisheries.
3 principles for Social Contract
1. Minimum provided/available so everyone can live a decent life; healthcare, education, benefits of work, pension (depending on affordability overall).
2. Everyone should contribute max they can, with most opportunities given to do so, such as our current system.
3. Protection against certain risks (Benefit system).
Taxes/Marriage/Family
- Maternity leave and high-quality childcare = more productive economy.
- Can force paid paternity leave to involve them more (3 months paid for each parent, then 3 months to share).
- Tax married couples as individuals to encourage full participation in the workplace, contributing to system max.
- Long holidays, do they make sense? Spilt up school year.
Schooling/Education
- Need for early learning of how to learn.
- Idea of under 4’s needing education too.
- Funds provided for reskilling more than currently.
- State provision of high quality childcare needed and potentially cost effective based on returns.
Old Age
- Largely supports UK current model.
- Allow flexible ‘step down’ of work without effecting pension terms, part-time, etc.
- 48% of 18-34 yr olds living with parents in EU.
o USA 36%
- Robotics for caring roles.
o ‘Cells’ of social groups and mental well-being.
Health
- Cost per quality year of life; how to judge?
- Digital provision + innovation (Increase cover + cost effective too).
- Smoking costs $1.4T globally
o 1.8% of world GDP (2012).
o $1T of lost productivity.
o $422B in treatment costs.
- Alcohol = £600B, 1% GDP (2009).
o MidHigh income countries.
- Obesity = $5.1B in UK every year.
o Wider societal cost = $25B
- Smoking = $2.5B per yr UK
o Societal cost = $11B.
- Alcohol = $52 UK
o $3B on NHS
*Lifestyle Diseases*
If every country raised taxes on; alcohol, tobacco, sugary beverages.
- 50m premature deaths prevented.
o +20% production revenue.
Presumed consent works best on uptake.
Generations
- Restoring populations of whales same as planting 2B trees.
- Minister for Future Generations (Wales)
o For representing unborn generations.
New Social Contract
- We live in separate generational societies.
- Need for collective approach, shared.
- Wealth tax (say 2-3% per yr).
o Penalise those holding wealth in low productivity activities.
Improves economic growth and inequality.
- Make ‘fads’ (smoking/drinking/etc) pay for themselves.
- Pro-Rata benefits to disincentivize zero-hour economy.
- 40% of multinational companies shift profits into tax havens.
o In UK 50% of multinational subsidiaries report zero profit.
o America is worse.
- So tax not by where HQ or ‘based’, but by where operating profits gained.
o Ban the use of Copyright royalties by making it illegal to sell more than ‘x’ amount of product under value, outside of promotion (Sales in territory).
- IMF estimates $500-600B corporate tax lost each year.
o Developing countries hit hardest in relative terms.
- $8.7-36T, $200B lost each yr.
A summary of salient points/arguments for my own notes, paraphrased and added upon;
Work
- Welfare state about ‘evening out’ consumption over whole life, not rich giving to poor.
- Ban ‘zero hour’ contracts and instead legislate ‘minimum paid hours’?
o 3% working pop UK in these contracts.
o Companies outsource to get around this, rise in 'third-party contractors'.
o 7% of UK pop in gig work.
- UBI doesn’t lead to more jobs (shown to not work).
- AI – creativity, emotional intelligence, ability to work with people will remain valued and needed skills.
- Manufacturing jobs raise lower paid workers to middle class?
Climate Change
- 1C rise on industrial temps already.
- 80% forest cover already lost globally.
- 6-12m hectares lost of agricultural land each annum.
- 50% of the world’s wildlife lost in last 40 yrs.
- Unsustainable overfishing spread to over 33% of the world’s fisheries.
3 principles for Social Contract
1. Minimum provided/available so everyone can live a decent life; healthcare, education, benefits of work, pension (depending on affordability overall).
2. Everyone should contribute max they can, with most opportunities given to do so, such as our current system.
3. Protection against certain risks (Benefit system).
Taxes/Marriage/Family
- Maternity leave and high-quality childcare = more productive economy.
- Can force paid paternity leave to involve them more (3 months paid for each parent, then 3 months to share).
- Tax married couples as individuals to encourage full participation in the workplace, contributing to system max.
- Long holidays, do they make sense? Spilt up school year.
Schooling/Education
- Need for early learning of how to learn.
- Idea of under 4’s needing education too.
- Funds provided for reskilling more than currently.
- State provision of high quality childcare needed and potentially cost effective based on returns.
Old Age
- Largely supports UK current model.
- Allow flexible ‘step down’ of work without effecting pension terms, part-time, etc.
- 48% of 18-34 yr olds living with parents in EU.
o USA 36%
- Robotics for caring roles.
o ‘Cells’ of social groups and mental well-being.
Health
- Cost per quality year of life; how to judge?
- Digital provision + innovation (Increase cover + cost effective too).
- Smoking costs $1.4T globally
o 1.8% of world GDP (2012).
o $1T of lost productivity.
o $422B in treatment costs.
- Alcohol = £600B, 1% GDP (2009).
o MidHigh income countries.
- Obesity = $5.1B in UK every year.
o Wider societal cost = $25B
- Smoking = $2.5B per yr UK
o Societal cost = $11B.
- Alcohol = $52 UK
o $3B on NHS
*Lifestyle Diseases*
If every country raised taxes on; alcohol, tobacco, sugary beverages.
- 50m premature deaths prevented.
o +20% production revenue.
Presumed consent works best on uptake.
Generations
- Restoring populations of whales same as planting 2B trees.
- Minister for Future Generations (Wales)
o For representing unborn generations.
New Social Contract
- We live in separate generational societies.
- Need for collective approach, shared.
- Wealth tax (say 2-3% per yr).
o Penalise those holding wealth in low productivity activities.
Improves economic growth and inequality.
- Make ‘fads’ (smoking/drinking/etc) pay for themselves.
- Pro-Rata benefits to disincentivize zero-hour economy.
- 40% of multinational companies shift profits into tax havens.
o In UK 50% of multinational subsidiaries report zero profit.
o America is worse.
- So tax not by where HQ or ‘based’, but by where operating profits gained.
o Ban the use of Copyright royalties by making it illegal to sell more than ‘x’ amount of product under value, outside of promotion (Sales in territory).
- IMF estimates $500-600B corporate tax lost each year.
o Developing countries hit hardest in relative terms.
- $8.7-36T, $200B lost each yr.
Read
November 22, 2021No rating, because while I can't say this book was poorly researched or badly written, I disagree with many the author's assumptions and conclusions. This book is just so capitalistic, it's disgusting. The author does not break out of the confines of western liberal thought at all, which I had (probably against my better judgment) expected her to do. The chapter on retirement made my blood boil, because the author just assumes and accepts that the answer to growing pension costs is everyone working longer. She supports the education of and support for women simply because this will enlarge the workforce and therefore raise productivity. Approaching life from a purely economic standpoint is simply perverse to me.
November 10, 2022
The concept of social contract originated from the Age of Enlightenment. The term is first coined by Jean-Jacques Rousseau in his 1762 book The Social Contract, a Discourse on the Origin of Inequality, and a Discourse on Political Economy. Various philosophers discussed the concept of the social contract, which by and large explains the voluntary mutual dependence between individuals and the states (or monarchies in the previous time) in return for otherwise unattainable benefits. In layperson's understanding, it could be described as an understanding for individuals who trust the state to take care of them in exchange for surrendering some of their freedoms (usually in the form of taxation).
Minouche Shafik offers an interesting insight drawing on the intersection between political philosophy and economics to understand the changing world order in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, major power rivalries (see the growing U.S.-China tension and the Russian invasion of Ukraine), climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s the first book I read in the 2020s which discusses at length the consequences of the recent pandemic, how it revealed our interdependence and the way it has been affecting our global architecture.
The author argues in the first chapter that a new social contract is needed. We need to negotiate it since the world is facing rapid changes in varying areas, not simply the ones that could be covered through traditional state-individual relations that are the leftovers from the Enlightenment. Most advanced economies are facing the threat of an ageing population. Life expectancy is higher in some developed countries, but there is fewer workforce. People live longer, yet the retirement age doesn’t correspond to that fact. And it has become more widespread for people to work in flexible working arrangements such as zero-hour contracts with limited additional benefits. Besides it, there are also growing threats of the rise of digital technology (i.e. artificial intelligence) and climate change, the latter of which is a stark reminder that our days are numbered if we don’t mitigate it through a set of policies and changing our mindsets. The author’s explanations are convincing and would probably be useful to inform policymakers on cross-cutting issues.
Several themes are addressed, such as children, education, health, work, old age and generational problems – basically what happens to individuals from the moment they were born until they could no longer contribute to the economy. But what interested me the most is the way the author makes some attempt to propose a social contract that considers how our current policies would affect future generations – the people who haven’t been born yet. Climate change topples other issues for generational problems. The question about climate change is perhaps more about morality rather than economics: would we leave a better or worse earth for future generations? One of the proposed answers suggests that this problem exists since we only measure economic growth through the GDP. Companies could generate profit at the expense of the environment, yet the thing that would be measured is mostly the profits. For better or worse, the GDP does not include determinants such as individual or environmental well-being.
The author warns that we are increasingly living in ‘you’re on your own’ societies, with recurring features such as the rise of populism and the epidemic of mental health issues. We have been taking the social contract for granted all this time, yet there are many pressing issues that could be addressed by renegotiating our social contract, although its implementation might differ for each country due to differing political systems and situations on the ground. The author’s ideas in this book are not short of 'ideal' conditions. I could imagine the challenges in implementing it, especially in countries in the global south where the citizens are less trusting of their governments and predominantly work in informal sectors (thus, not paying taxes), since the ideas offered by the author are devised on the assumption that citizens pool their resources into the social contract and trust the state to deliver a set of policies that help contribute for more positive well-being. Nonetheless, the ideas are good as a benchmark for policymakers to negotiate what kind of social contract would work in their respective societies.
Minouche Shafik offers an interesting insight drawing on the intersection between political philosophy and economics to understand the changing world order in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, major power rivalries (see the growing U.S.-China tension and the Russian invasion of Ukraine), climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s the first book I read in the 2020s which discusses at length the consequences of the recent pandemic, how it revealed our interdependence and the way it has been affecting our global architecture.
The author argues in the first chapter that a new social contract is needed. We need to negotiate it since the world is facing rapid changes in varying areas, not simply the ones that could be covered through traditional state-individual relations that are the leftovers from the Enlightenment. Most advanced economies are facing the threat of an ageing population. Life expectancy is higher in some developed countries, but there is fewer workforce. People live longer, yet the retirement age doesn’t correspond to that fact. And it has become more widespread for people to work in flexible working arrangements such as zero-hour contracts with limited additional benefits. Besides it, there are also growing threats of the rise of digital technology (i.e. artificial intelligence) and climate change, the latter of which is a stark reminder that our days are numbered if we don’t mitigate it through a set of policies and changing our mindsets. The author’s explanations are convincing and would probably be useful to inform policymakers on cross-cutting issues.
Several themes are addressed, such as children, education, health, work, old age and generational problems – basically what happens to individuals from the moment they were born until they could no longer contribute to the economy. But what interested me the most is the way the author makes some attempt to propose a social contract that considers how our current policies would affect future generations – the people who haven’t been born yet. Climate change topples other issues for generational problems. The question about climate change is perhaps more about morality rather than economics: would we leave a better or worse earth for future generations? One of the proposed answers suggests that this problem exists since we only measure economic growth through the GDP. Companies could generate profit at the expense of the environment, yet the thing that would be measured is mostly the profits. For better or worse, the GDP does not include determinants such as individual or environmental well-being.
The author warns that we are increasingly living in ‘you’re on your own’ societies, with recurring features such as the rise of populism and the epidemic of mental health issues. We have been taking the social contract for granted all this time, yet there are many pressing issues that could be addressed by renegotiating our social contract, although its implementation might differ for each country due to differing political systems and situations on the ground. The author’s ideas in this book are not short of 'ideal' conditions. I could imagine the challenges in implementing it, especially in countries in the global south where the citizens are less trusting of their governments and predominantly work in informal sectors (thus, not paying taxes), since the ideas offered by the author are devised on the assumption that citizens pool their resources into the social contract and trust the state to deliver a set of policies that help contribute for more positive well-being. Nonetheless, the ideas are good as a benchmark for policymakers to negotiate what kind of social contract would work in their respective societies.
July 17, 2021
عظيم. في انتظار ترجمته بفارغ الصبر.
May 2, 2024
“what we owe to each other” is justice, is accountability, and to not have an ongoing genocide in this day and age. shafik is a sham
July 29, 2021
This is a very good read, but not a great one.
Shafik is an impressive figure with some serious credentials, and to be fair writing a book like this is a serious challenge, so on balance she's done well and it's definitely worth your time and attention. The social contract is a hefty topic and the author explains it well in the opening chapter, with a nice overview of why the current social contract in Western democracies seems to be breaking down. The rest of the book essentially follows by breaking down different aspects of the social contract in more depth (childcare, education, health, work, old age and the future). These chapters each do a good job of explaining the basic issues at play in each area, which often boil down to individual rights versus collective good - for example in health, a person's right to smoke versus the collective harm having smokers does to society.
There are however some issues with the book. Some are perhaps a product of the nature of the book itself - writing just ~250 pages on such a vast topic means you're bound to gloss over some things. However it does feel that limited page count notwithstanding, Shafik skirts getting to the meat of some of the issues of individual rights versus collective good. One could come away from this book thinking the answers are really pretty simple when in fact these issues are fiercely debated, as even a cursory look at the current political landscape will show you.
The book isn't really helped by it's writing either. Overall the writing is quite dry, and while not necessarily overly dense or academic, the writing definitely is that of an economist. This feeling extends beyond just style though. While the lens of economics is a useful tool to look at many of these issues, there are areas where it just feels too narrow given the subject matter. For instance, Shafik discusses work she did on climate, in which she and her colleagues asked to what degree a swimming pool could be a substitute for natural lakes. This makes total sense in economist-land, but in reality it is an absolutely absurd question to even ask. While Shafik does acknowledge areas where economics has traditionally missed the mark (climate, compensating the 'losers' in trade liberalisation), it feels like her thinking fails to get out of the economics box that made these catastrophic errors in the first place. This topic deserves so much more than just economists.
My complaints have sort of dragged on, so let me finish on a positive. I liked this book, and I really agree with the author's basic conclusions - there are forces at work which mean that the social contract must bend, or else it will break. The things Shafik suggests are not radical, but are all moves in the right direction. This book is an important read to make sure that we are all thinking about these issues and can take part in positive change. Now let's just make sure there are more than just economists seated at the table.
Shafik is an impressive figure with some serious credentials, and to be fair writing a book like this is a serious challenge, so on balance she's done well and it's definitely worth your time and attention. The social contract is a hefty topic and the author explains it well in the opening chapter, with a nice overview of why the current social contract in Western democracies seems to be breaking down. The rest of the book essentially follows by breaking down different aspects of the social contract in more depth (childcare, education, health, work, old age and the future). These chapters each do a good job of explaining the basic issues at play in each area, which often boil down to individual rights versus collective good - for example in health, a person's right to smoke versus the collective harm having smokers does to society.
There are however some issues with the book. Some are perhaps a product of the nature of the book itself - writing just ~250 pages on such a vast topic means you're bound to gloss over some things. However it does feel that limited page count notwithstanding, Shafik skirts getting to the meat of some of the issues of individual rights versus collective good. One could come away from this book thinking the answers are really pretty simple when in fact these issues are fiercely debated, as even a cursory look at the current political landscape will show you.
The book isn't really helped by it's writing either. Overall the writing is quite dry, and while not necessarily overly dense or academic, the writing definitely is that of an economist. This feeling extends beyond just style though. While the lens of economics is a useful tool to look at many of these issues, there are areas where it just feels too narrow given the subject matter. For instance, Shafik discusses work she did on climate, in which she and her colleagues asked to what degree a swimming pool could be a substitute for natural lakes. This makes total sense in economist-land, but in reality it is an absolutely absurd question to even ask. While Shafik does acknowledge areas where economics has traditionally missed the mark (climate, compensating the 'losers' in trade liberalisation), it feels like her thinking fails to get out of the economics box that made these catastrophic errors in the first place. This topic deserves so much more than just economists.
My complaints have sort of dragged on, so let me finish on a positive. I liked this book, and I really agree with the author's basic conclusions - there are forces at work which mean that the social contract must bend, or else it will break. The things Shafik suggests are not radical, but are all moves in the right direction. This book is an important read to make sure that we are all thinking about these issues and can take part in positive change. Now let's just make sure there are more than just economists seated at the table.
May 29, 2023
Love the premise but somehow this just didn’t come together for me. It was very dry. And while it proposed solution after solution it left me feeling like no solution is possible because it’s all so big and everything requires endless dollars. Where everything isn’t possible nothing feels plausible.
October 20, 2021
Some interesting thoughts, but too much old paradigma of the World Bank etc. Humans as creatures whose implicit reason of existence is productivity and economic progres. Hm. I expected more courageous thinking of somebody coming from leading economic school of Europe.
June 13, 2021
A must read given the turning-point in history we find ourselves at. Minouche collects and summarises in 200 pages a long list of research, key findings and ways forward in areas such as children, education, work, retirement, health and many others. Minouche did a good job in showing how failures in one area of our social contract spillover to many other areas and make us worse of as society.
She proposes a fairer and more equitable social contract, not through the increase of the welfare state and income redistribution alone, but rather by structural reforms and new regulations that focus on investing in people (from early childhood on), giving them opportunities, making companies more accountable and building a new system of risk sharing to increase overall well-being.
Despite a bit skeptical on how much of that can actually be achieved over the next years, in an idealist world, Minouche did a great work on proposing tangible ways to go that should at least guide and inform our political debate and aspirations.
As I said, a must read as we find ourselves in a critical juncture where the opportunity and space for change was created by the pandemic. This is a book that will open your eyes to the key areas of our contract that need urgent reform - even if you were unaware. She call us out to develop a ‘social contract that delivers better architecture of both security and opportunity for everyone, a social contract that is less about ‘me’ and more about ‘we’, recognises our interdependence and uses it for mutual benefit.’
She proposes a fairer and more equitable social contract, not through the increase of the welfare state and income redistribution alone, but rather by structural reforms and new regulations that focus on investing in people (from early childhood on), giving them opportunities, making companies more accountable and building a new system of risk sharing to increase overall well-being.
Despite a bit skeptical on how much of that can actually be achieved over the next years, in an idealist world, Minouche did a great work on proposing tangible ways to go that should at least guide and inform our political debate and aspirations.
As I said, a must read as we find ourselves in a critical juncture where the opportunity and space for change was created by the pandemic. This is a book that will open your eyes to the key areas of our contract that need urgent reform - even if you were unaware. She call us out to develop a ‘social contract that delivers better architecture of both security and opportunity for everyone, a social contract that is less about ‘me’ and more about ‘we’, recognises our interdependence and uses it for mutual benefit.’
September 27, 2021
Interesting but certainly not many original concepts.
February 4, 2023
Te ir vairākas ļoti vērtīgas un plašākas diskusijas vērstas idejas, kuru īstenošana var sekmēt jauna sociālā līguma iedzīvināšanu. Piemēram, vairāk līdzekļu investēt nevis vecu cilvēku medicīniskajā aprūpē, kas paildzinās viņu dzīvi par dažiem gadiem, bet jaunu cilvēku veselības aprūpē, kas nodrošinās ilgas, veselīgas vecumdienas. Vai aicinājums ieguldījumus izglītībā fokusēt uz pieaugušo mācīšanos, nevis jaunu cilvēku izglītošanu, jo sabiedrības sociālās un ekonomiskās iespējas un vajadzības ir mainījušās.
March 9, 2022
Whilst not taking quite the same angle, this was quite similar in scope to Mark Carney's book Value(s) but was much much better written, framed and structured. Very interesting and clear discussion of the key points of a social contract and where it's currently failing us. I particularly appreciated the section on education.
July 6, 2022
A daring and ambitious book by an economist to make prescriptions about how societies should treat their members. And unfortunately, a bit too ambitious.
While much of the information is interesting, some of the presented data and information points are misleading. There's a reference to the now-debunked marshmallow experiment (where a child is left alone with a marshmallow, and whether or not they choose to disobey orders and eat it can predict their future self-control) which was found in Benjamin et. al. 2020 (JEB&O) to have little or no predictive power on many indicators of later life success.
It might also have done well to engage with some of the literature in political theory and philosophy about our current political moment. Much of the recommendations appear to be policy tinkery, which some might contest would be in any sense a renegotiation of the social contract. For all the discussion of, quotation from, and inspiration from the Beveridge report on the National Health Service, this book neglects the fact that its reimaginations of the relationship between the state and its people were in essence political, not technical, movements. Ones that involved concurrent popular support in addition to the "strong and slow boring of hard boards" in the words of Weber.
But nonetheless the book does have value. It does provide a vision, however limited, forward from what we might consider the ideological quandary of our times that radicals are seeking to fill. It might help someone with little knowledge get a better handle on what the future truly requires. And it might inspire one to read further, more critically, and engage more readily in seeking a better social contract for themselves and their loved ones. If that happens, then Shafik would have more than exceeded as an author and intellectual.
While much of the information is interesting, some of the presented data and information points are misleading. There's a reference to the now-debunked marshmallow experiment (where a child is left alone with a marshmallow, and whether or not they choose to disobey orders and eat it can predict their future self-control) which was found in Benjamin et. al. 2020 (JEB&O) to have little or no predictive power on many indicators of later life success.
It might also have done well to engage with some of the literature in political theory and philosophy about our current political moment. Much of the recommendations appear to be policy tinkery, which some might contest would be in any sense a renegotiation of the social contract. For all the discussion of, quotation from, and inspiration from the Beveridge report on the National Health Service, this book neglects the fact that its reimaginations of the relationship between the state and its people were in essence political, not technical, movements. Ones that involved concurrent popular support in addition to the "strong and slow boring of hard boards" in the words of Weber.
But nonetheless the book does have value. It does provide a vision, however limited, forward from what we might consider the ideological quandary of our times that radicals are seeking to fill. It might help someone with little knowledge get a better handle on what the future truly requires. And it might inspire one to read further, more critically, and engage more readily in seeking a better social contract for themselves and their loved ones. If that happens, then Shafik would have more than exceeded as an author and intellectual.
July 16, 2021
Who should read this book?
✔️ Economics/Political Science students
✔️ working in the related industry
✔️ have interest in socioeconomic
True to the title, Minouche Shafik explained in details few components (children, edu, health, work, old age & generations) that play major role in social contract. I never know how deep the impact of social contract is towards us until I read this book. It’s really an eye opener especially reading about old age & retirement. Government may keep changing policies for working people but how about the pensioners? Some countries have little support for the retired workers, thus the cost of caring fall unto the families 🥺 Something to ponder!
And what stuck to me most is that, social contract is not only about ‘me’ but a whole ‘we’. Without realising, we are actually interdependent on each other and benefiting from the mutual benefits we have (income, edu, healthcare, protection).
Little bit of warning, this book can be a heavy material to some of you. It contains a lot of facts, statistics which means a good literature work done from the author! 👏🏻
✔️ Economics/Political Science students
✔️ working in the related industry
✔️ have interest in socioeconomic
True to the title, Minouche Shafik explained in details few components (children, edu, health, work, old age & generations) that play major role in social contract. I never know how deep the impact of social contract is towards us until I read this book. It’s really an eye opener especially reading about old age & retirement. Government may keep changing policies for working people but how about the pensioners? Some countries have little support for the retired workers, thus the cost of caring fall unto the families 🥺 Something to ponder!
And what stuck to me most is that, social contract is not only about ‘me’ but a whole ‘we’. Without realising, we are actually interdependent on each other and benefiting from the mutual benefits we have (income, edu, healthcare, protection).
Little bit of warning, this book can be a heavy material to some of you. It contains a lot of facts, statistics which means a good literature work done from the author! 👏🏻
August 16, 2021
I found this book from Martin Wolf's FT 2021 Economics Summer Readings.
"What We Owe Each Other" tells us about contemporary social issues and how we, as an economic agent in a society, should play our role and interact with other economic agents, such as the government and the private sector. The author demonstrates that the transforming society due to population ageing, technological advancement, climate change, and gender equality has compelled us to redefine our societal paradigms through the reestablishment of new social contracts.
Indeed, for those already familiar with the topics will not learn much from this book (even though I really recommend this book to those who still want to explore these topics more). But I presume that is not the main intention of the author. Rather, with its intuitive policy prescriptions, this book serves as a reminder vis-à-vis the importance of re-examining our prevailing social contracts and as a juxtaposition of the possible outcomes of the social contracts that we are willing to choose.
"What We Owe Each Other" tells us about contemporary social issues and how we, as an economic agent in a society, should play our role and interact with other economic agents, such as the government and the private sector. The author demonstrates that the transforming society due to population ageing, technological advancement, climate change, and gender equality has compelled us to redefine our societal paradigms through the reestablishment of new social contracts.
Indeed, for those already familiar with the topics will not learn much from this book (even though I really recommend this book to those who still want to explore these topics more). But I presume that is not the main intention of the author. Rather, with its intuitive policy prescriptions, this book serves as a reminder vis-à-vis the importance of re-examining our prevailing social contracts and as a juxtaposition of the possible outcomes of the social contracts that we are willing to choose.
May 16, 2022
Really enjoyed this book's clear attention to detail with the nitty-gritty of public policy and analysis of effective approaches to a variety of issues, as well as the author's clarity of direction in constructing a very straight-forward "new social contract" which provides for the basic wellbeing and continued betterment of countries. Admittedly a bit data-heavy as other commenters have noted, which may not make it a rollicking read, but it is definitely great for the wonk-ish among us.
October 27, 2021
... Eh. Many unquestioned assumptions about the world we live in and not enough acknowledgement about how the system has failed many and no amount of "new" social contracts can fix their lives if this broken system remains.
May 12, 2022
Basic, introductionary book that doesn't offer anything new to social scientists. Even the "new" social contract that Shafik introduces is outdated and doesn't take ecological issues into consideration in formulation of sustainable future.
April 18, 2021
Very introductory and accessible, it could be interesting for someone who has not followed discussions on social matters but provides no new ideas
September 10, 2022
Touches on some important issues but the arguments were too superficial.
April 1, 2024
I appreciated the format of the historical examples tied to an outline of a potential policy, and going through policies for each stage of people's lives and how they tie in with each other.
Quick notes of what I remember the book advocating for:
- investment in education (particularly at the early ages to get the highest returns)
- finding ways to keep people productive for longer (e.g. lifelong learning, revising pension schemes based on life expectancy)
- reducing burdens on families especially women to care for the elderly
- getting multinational countries to pay their share of taxes so states get the appropriate revenue for policies
- everyone deserves access to basic healthcare, opportunities to advance and some form of pension
- revising the social contract in a way that spreads the burdens evenly among all members of society.
Quick notes of what I remember the book advocating for:
- investment in education (particularly at the early ages to get the highest returns)
- finding ways to keep people productive for longer (e.g. lifelong learning, revising pension schemes based on life expectancy)
- reducing burdens on families especially women to care for the elderly
- getting multinational countries to pay their share of taxes so states get the appropriate revenue for policies
- everyone deserves access to basic healthcare, opportunities to advance and some form of pension
- revising the social contract in a way that spreads the burdens evenly among all members of society.
May 10, 2024
Despite the title which I find great, and has been picked up by many a bien-pensant name dropper, this falls a little short of its ambition. I like the mentions of natural capital, but those only come after a long entirely neutral prologue that is more What We Are Supposed To Owe Each Other than something with more practical realism.
Read it to understand more about the now Columbia president embroiled in a difficult situation of generational conflict that the book alludes to in places, but it seems has forced her to act to suppress, possibly by the irrational demands of donors and capital particular to the USA at this moment in time.
Read it to understand more about the now Columbia president embroiled in a difficult situation of generational conflict that the book alludes to in places, but it seems has forced her to act to suppress, possibly by the irrational demands of donors and capital particular to the USA at this moment in time.
August 23, 2021
Dame Minouche introduces 3 key concepts which is paramount in reordering society - security, risk and opportunity.
Basic needs are identified as parts of life that should be secured from food and education at a young age and with a growing gig economy to adequate healthcare as the society ages. The costs of providing for these and the risks of the insufficiency of security should and is be bourned by society with examples in the book of succcess stories when inclusiveness is understaken in policymaking. Above and beyond providing for security, we are encouranged to consider the importance of creating fairer opportunities across the board to overcome current and future challenges from climate change to an aging population.
Excellent read covering a wide breadth of social policy issues and how we as a society can overcome them collectively.
Basic needs are identified as parts of life that should be secured from food and education at a young age and with a growing gig economy to adequate healthcare as the society ages. The costs of providing for these and the risks of the insufficiency of security should and is be bourned by society with examples in the book of succcess stories when inclusiveness is understaken in policymaking. Above and beyond providing for security, we are encouranged to consider the importance of creating fairer opportunities across the board to overcome current and future challenges from climate change to an aging population.
Excellent read covering a wide breadth of social policy issues and how we as a society can overcome them collectively.
February 7, 2023
I was a little worried that this book would be too short to cover anything in meaningful detail, but that isn’t at all the case. This is a well-written and thoughtful exploration of the issues that — when focused on and improved — should lead to an increase in the well-being of people around the world.
April 23, 2024
I appreciate the econs take on society - smth i didnt expect going into the book, though i should have known bc the author is an economist. As someone who is not super familiar with the econs lens on society i think the book is worth a reread just so i can fully understand the circumstances and their consequences spelled out better.
I feel that the book could have had more political nuance or articulate a bolder reimagination rather than assuming that our world will stay as status quo - but I wouldn’t think its fair to give it a lower review just because of that because maybe that’s not the premise of the book?
I feel that the book could have had more political nuance or articulate a bolder reimagination rather than assuming that our world will stay as status quo - but I wouldn’t think its fair to give it a lower review just because of that because maybe that’s not the premise of the book?
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December 22, 2021Not sure what to rate this. A really great overview of the problems facing society today, with accompanying citations/data, but nothing really new in terms of identifying problems or proposing solutions, at least if this is the kind of stuff you already have an interest in.
March 24, 2022
This book reads like a masters thesis that was turned into a book. It’s mostly about the economics of “good” social policies, so it’s really only relevant to policy makers. There’s no reason for anyone else to read it.
August 21, 2023
Started on the ebook when Lawrence Wong mentioned it during my stint, but never managed to progress much until Libby FINALLY obtained audiobook copies. Always good to read into social policy! Brings context to some of the decisions we have made in Singapore. Timely for The Woke Salaryman's post on the importance of appreciating the social compact too.
April 14, 2024
I never know what my goal is for when I read books like this, but I think it might be to assure myself that we have better systems than the ones that get shoved down our throats.
It took me nearly the entire book to realize that some of the things she said that made me bristle were because she's a banker.
It took me nearly the entire book to realize that some of the things she said that made me bristle were because she's a banker.
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