Download Tab. 2: Relationship between knowledge and learning

Tab. 1: Historical evolution of economic systems
Pre-capitalistic stage
Mercantilism (< 1780)
Production of commodities by
means of money
Industrial capitalism: prefordism (1780-1910)
Capitalistic stage
Industrial capitalism: fordism
(1910-1980)
Post-fordist or cognitive
capitalism
(> 1980)
C-M–C
M – C(*) – M’
Production of money by
means of commodities
M – C(**) – M’
Production of money by
means of knowledge
M – C(Kn) - M’
Where:
C(*) = decreasing returns of scale; C(**) = increasing returns of scale  Kaldor-Verdoorn Law; Kn =
knowledge
Figure 1: The virtuous circle of the Fordist growth (Boyer 2004 a)
Potential evolution
of the productivity
Taylorization of the
productive process
Stability of the
capital/labor
compromise
Workers
acceptance
Strong productivity gains
Accumulation:
static econom.
Profits level
Concentration of
the fights on the
purchasing
power
Weak
internationalizatio
n
Consume
outlets
which consent
Production of
instrumental goods
COGNITIVE CAPITALISM
TWO STYLISED FACTS.
 THE CORE OF ACCUMULATION IS SHIFTING FROM MATERIAL GOODS TO IMMATERIAL GOODS,
ACCORDING TO A NEW TYPE OF INTERNATIONAL DIVISION OF LABOUR, BASED ON KNOWLEDGE
(COGNITIVE DIVISION OF LABOUR).
 SECONDLY, KNOWLEDGE REPRESENTS THE KEY VARIABLE TO DEFINE ACCUMULATION PROCESS
KNOWLEDGE INTENSITY



THE QUALITY OF THE INTERPRETATION AND OF THE LEARNING PROCESS;
THE LEVEL OF PROPAGATION AND DIFFUSION OF KNOWLEDGE ITSELF;
THE EXISTING TYPE OF PROPERTY RULES;
IN COGNITIVE CAPITALISM TWO NEW KINDS OF SCALE ECONOMIES ARE GENERATED:
 DYNAMICS ECONOMIES OF LEARNING (LEARNING BY DOING AND LEARNING BY USING)
 NEW SPATIAL ECONOMIES RELATED TO THE TRANSMISSION AND THE DIFFUSION SPEED OF KNOWLEDGE 
IT BECOMES NECESSARY TO REDEFINE THE SPATIAL SPHERE OF THE ACCUMULATION PROCESS AND TO
RETHINK THE CONCEPT OF EXTERNALITY
COGNITIVE CAPITALISM IS CHARACTERIZED BY INCREASING RETURNS OF SCALE
Tab. 2: Relationship between knowledge and learning
Know-that (culture)
Know-how (skill)
Information
(training)
personal

knowledge
social
(general intellect)
knowledge

codified knowledge /tacit knowledge
Tab. 3: Knowledge taxonomy according deepness, diffusion and sociality
deepness
diffusion
sociality
High
Know-that
Information (standardized and
mechanized)
General Intellect
Medium
Know-how
Know-how (standardized but not
always mechamized)
Know-that: General Intellect:
privat and social knowledge
Low
Information
Know-that (tacitness)
Personal knowledge
EFFECTS:
 THE NEXUS BETWEEN LIVING LABOUR AND DEAD LABOUR, THAT IS BETWEEN WORD AND
LANGUAGE  AS RESULT OF DEMATERIALIZATION OF PHISICAL CAPITAL.
WORD IS THE BECOMING OF THE LANGUAGE, WHILST LANGUAGE IS THE CODIFICATION OF
COMMUNICATION PROCEDURES.  TACIT KNOWLEDGE versus CODIFIED KNOWLEDGE
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHT  TACITNESS  KNOWLEDGE SCARCITY  LOW LEARNING  LOW
GENERAL INTELLECT  DECREASING OF POTENTIAL PLUS-VALUE
CONTRADICTION BETWEEN PRIVATE EXPROPRIATION OF GENERAL INTELLECT AND ITS SOURCE OF
VALUE
 THE NEXUS BETWEEN ABSTRACT LABOUR AND CONCRETE LABOUR  BRAIN ALIENATION
SOCIAL COOPERATION AND GENERAL INTELLECT  INDIVIDUAL BARGAIN AND HIERARCHY
WORK TIME  LIFE TIME, PRODUCTION  REPRODUCTION
 WORKFARE  WELFARE.
 WAGE  INCOME.
BASIC INCOME AS THE RIGHT TOOL IN INCOME DISTRIBUTON AS REMUNERATION OF LIFE
PRODUCTIVITY
Figure 2: The ambiguous circle of cognitive capitalism
Potential evolution of the productivity
Computerization of the
productive process
Flexible
accumulation
(dynamic scale
economies)
Absence of a
capital/labour
compromise
Precarious workers
(individual bargain)
Strong
productivity gains
(externalities)
Rents/profits level
Globalization
Learning
exploitation
and income
polarization
New financial
products
Structural
instability
Production of
immaterial goods
IS IT POSSIBLE A NEW SOCIAL PACT (NEW DEAL) IN COGNITIVE CAPITALISM?
THE FORDIST SOCIAL COMPROMISE WAS BASED ON THREE VARIABLES:
 THE EXISTENCE OF A NATION-STATE ABLE TO IMPLEMENT AN AUTONOMOUS POLICY (BOTH
MONETARY AND FISCAL);
 THE REDISTRIBUTION OF MATERIAL PRODUCTIVITY GAINS BETWEEN PROFITS AND WAGES
 THE EXISTENCE OF A CONSCIOUS ENTREPRENEURIAL CLASS
NO ONE OF THESE THREE VARIABLES ARE PRESENT NOW.
IN COGNITIVE CAPITALISM, A NEW DEAL CAN ONLY BE BASED ON THE FOLLOWING POINTS:
 DEFINITION OF A SUPRANATIONAL SPACE, ABLE TO NOT BE CONDITIONED BY FINANCIAL MARKETS (
EUROPE)
 A INCOME REDISTRIBUTION POLICY, WHICH CONSIDERES THAT PRODUCTIVITY DERIVES BY GENERAL
INTELLECT AND THE EXPLOITATION OF COMMON GOODS, LIFE. IN OTHER WORDS, A REDISTRIBUTION
POLICY BASED ON BASIC INCOME;
 THE NECESSITY OF A RECOMPOSITION OF FLEXWORKERS ABLE TO CREATE NEW FORMS OF SOCIAL
REPRESENTATION.
THE ONLY THING WE KNOW IS THAT THIS TYPE OF NEWDEAL CANNOT BE PROVIDED BY POLITICAL
INSTITUTIONS. HERE IS THE DIFFERENCE WITH KEYNESIAN ERA. NON MORE POLITICAL COMPROMISE (AS
ROOSVELT NEW DEAL IN USA), BUT ONLY CONFLICT IS ABLE TO ACHIEVE IT.