“Homo Economicus” as the Initiator of the Formation and Renovation of the National Model for Socio-Economic Development

Abstract

This study is dedicated to the author’s final scientific work and is published in the journal in memory of the renowned scientist. Aim. This study aims to substantiate the influence of the market system on the formation of “economic workers” as principally new participants of social reproduction. Tasks. This study examines different approaches of academic economists to the interpretation of the “homo economicus” concept in the economic science and provides basic recommendations for the building of a civilized state structure in the Russian Federation within the framework of the concept under examination. Results. This study proposes the author’s view of A. Smith’s characterization of market participants as “homo economicus” who can organize and successfully manage their own production under the new market conditions not only for the sake of maintaining their own existence and providing for their families, but also in order to increase national wealth and well-being by the “invisible hand of the market” (through taxes, job positions, economic development, etc.). “Homo economicus” is viewed as a political and economic phenomenon of a fully functioning market system of management, particularly against the backdrop of market reforms in the countries of the former Soviet Union. This study expands on the dialectics of the way the notion of “homo economicus” evolved through the works of K. Marx, A. Marshall, J. M. Keynes, V. I. Lenin, J. Schumpeter. Specific measures for increasing the role and importance of economic education and economic knowledge for the purpose of sustainable development of social production, improving national well-being and boosting the confidence in the authorities.