Animal Spirits

Archival Summary & Scope

Acclaimed economists George Akerlof and Robert Shiller, in *Animal Spirits*, argue that powerful psychological forces fundamentally drive economic cycles and global financial crises. Challenging conventional wisdom, they assert that an active, behaviorally informed government role is essential to manage these "animal spirits"—elements like confidence, fear, and fairness. They critique market-centric policies such as Reaganomics and Thatcherism for failing to account for human psychology, proposing a new economic framework to restore stability and prosperity.