Экономические науки/ 14. Экономическая теория

Post-graduate student Yaseva M.

National metallurgical academy of Ukraine, Dnepropetrovsk

Evolution of place and role of information in an economy

When was a concept of information product appeared? To answer this question it is necessary to research, how place and role of information in an economy were changing in different times.

It is possible to select three periods in the evolution of the role of information in an economy. The first period is represented by dominative position of conception of perfect symmetric information (A. Smith, W. Jevons, L. Valras, F. Edgeworth, A. Marshall, V. Pareto) and includes the first and second stages of industrial revolution (from the end of ХVIII century to beginning of ХХ century). The period of conception of perfect symmetric information is characterized by equal access of every participant of market to complete, reliable and free information about a market situation and its changes. Information shows by itself public good. A price presents by itself the only necessary signal-information, which participants require for making a decision about realization of operations and is sole factor, which determines market equilibrium.

The process of concentration of production and centralization of capital at the end of the XIX century results in appearance of monopolies, which complete the period of domination of perfect competition and, accordingly, position about perfection of information begins to be gradually added a doubt. Unlike the models of market with perfect symmetric information, the theories of adaptive and rational expectations (F. Keytan, J. Muth, R. Barro, R. Lucas, T. Sargent, N. Wallace) present by themselves development of market models with imperfect symmetric information. This means, that every participant of market has an equal access to information about a market situation and its changes, but it would be unreliable and incomplete. These models show by themselves beginning of the second period in the evolution of the role of information in an economy, which covers the interval of time approximately from 50th for 90th of ХХ century and coincides with beginning of revolution in science and technique.

More intensive use of information in a production resulted in understanding of growth of its meaningfulness in economic life. So 60th years of ХХ century are considered as time of origin of economic theory of information (G. Stigler, F. Mahlup, M. Porat). Within the limits of this theory the questions of production and distribution of information and knowledge are examined, the factors which influence on the cost of information in various terms are researched, etc. Besides the lines of public good information acquires the lines of production resource, which is characterized by rareness and is requiring payment.

The last third period in the evolution of the role of information in an economy (began at the end of ХХ century) is characterized by the attempts of solution problem of making a decision in the conditions of asymmetrical information (G. Akerlof, M. Spens, J. Stiglitz). This period is the time of transformation of information in direct productive force of society. Subsequent complication of connections between economic agents results to appearance of conception of imperfect asymmetrical information. The main position of this conception is supposition that the different participants of market have an unequal access to information about a market situation and its changes, which is characterized absence of plenitude, authenticity, is rare and requiring payment. Without regard to this, the asymmetricness of information and imperfection of competition give society advantages, which are brought by a non-price competition for which is not enough only price signals. In this case a large role is played by differences in quality commodities and services, in advertising, trade marks, etc.

We consider that the category of information product appeared in the period which is corresponding with conception of imperfect asymmetrical information. It is related above all things to that the presence of imperfect asymmetrical information enables to talk about existence of economic agents, the basic function of which consists in a production, storage and distribution of information for satisfaction of necessities of other economic subjects.

Finally, it is needed to mark that attitude toward the role of information in an economy from a public good and production resource (periods of conceptions of perfect and imperfect symmetric information) results in appearance of independent product (period of conception of imperfect asymmetrical information).