Measuring the Value of Women: A Feminist Analysis of Economic Categories and Thought

Abstract

The market structure is not the pure, formal, and non-corruptive institution which allows access to all those who want to participate. Competition and pricing depend on pre-market provisioning activities which shape the transactions before the market takes effect. Patriarchy exercises an influential market power. Women’s activities have been explicitly excluded as non-market activities, women were not enabled to choose equally of an array of options. Feminist economic philosophy challenged the tradition of economic thought and pointed to its ostracism. The essay gives an overview on the most disputed issues of feminist economics. It reveals alternative ways of economic thought and illustrates how gender equity forms a part of economic development, being an important key issue influencing economic growth.