People Are Self-Interested

If you were to eavesdrop on our conversations with clients, you will hear us constantly falling back to the underlying Social Architecture model for guidance. Since it’s been some time since we’ve revisited it, here are the core concepts:

• Individual - the web of interests and needs held by each person
• Network - the new value created by shared spaces and experiences
• Marketplaces - the flow that is facilitated by networks converging

Our presentation has been in the side navigation for some time now. I’m embedding it right here.

However, I was reminded of this again, today, by a presentation given by Joshua Porter of Bokardo.com, as well as a post in response to Nick Carr:

First of all, the idea that we act in self-interest is not in any way novel as Davies suggests. In fact, it is patently obvious if you’ve ever spent any amount of time observing other people. The most interesting thing about this argument is that we’re having it at all…there is no question whatever that people act in their own self-interest. It is observable in all humans. Also, it is explicable in theory. One outcome of the Theory of Evolution is that those species that survive are the ones programmed to keep themselves and their close families safe. Self-interest is this survival instinct manifested. It is how we are programmed at a deep, deep level.

[…]

Second, Carr’s dichotomy (the one between “markets” and our “social lives”) is vaporware. To even think that efficiency in the marketplace is an intrinsic good is not only astounding, but offensive given the behavior of many companies in the world. Does not Carr see that markets affect the lives of people in the same way that any other social interaction would? Is it not clear that business is society, and society business?

Source, “Friday Rant: Are people self-interested?”, Bokardo.com

It’s a great rant and I recommend that you give a quick once over if you’re building or planning to build anything that’s inherently “social”.

Technorati Tags: bokardo, joshua+porter, social+architecture

This entry was posted on Monday, August 27th, 2007 at 2:46 pm and is filed under Social Tools, Ascending To Social. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.