Cordial goods: The role of intangibles in economics

Abstract

Extending the margins of economic rationality in an effective and ethical-critical sense through cordiality opens the door to the possibility of managing and promoting the intangible capital which, just like reciprocity, trust, affinity or reputation, is a condition of the possibility of economic progress. This is because, among other things, these allow the establishment and development of the relational processes, like cooperation, that allow it but with an underlying emotional and communicative dimension, which cannot be duly managed through merely strategic-technical and calculative-instrumental rationality. It is also because these assets are a both a means and an end for the economy as they are an essential element to deal with managing common good and are, at the same time, a special kind of common good. The aim of this chapter is to show the role, characteristics and cordial dimension that underlie the common goods that are so important for the economic domain, such as reciprocity, trust or reputation, through the works of Elinor Ostrom, Pierpaolo Donati, Amartya Sen or Domingo García-Marzá, among others.