Labour theory of value in the context of "Socially necessary labour time"

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⭐ Core Definition: Labour theory of value

The labor theory of value (LTV) is an economic theory that argues that the economic value of a good or service is determined by the total amount of socially necessary labor required to produce it. The LTV is usually associated with Marxian economics, although it also appears in the theories of earlier classical economists such as Adam Smith and David Ricardo.

Smith saw the price of a commodity in terms of the labor that the purchaser must expend to buy it, which embodies the concept of labor commanded. Ricardo, building on Smith, developed a more consistent labor theory of value, arguing that the value of commodities is determined by the quantity of labor embodied in their production. Karl Marx's theory, which is the most elaborate and influential, holds that value is a social relation specific to commodity-producing societies. Marx distinguished between concrete useful labor, which creates use value, and abstract labor, the substance of exchange value. He argued that the magnitude of value is determined by the average labor-time required for production under normal conditions.

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👉 Labour theory of value in the context of Socially necessary labour time

Socially necessary labour time in Marx's critique of political economy is what regulates the exchange value of commodities in trade. In short, socially necessary labour time refers to the average quantity of labour time that must be performed under currently prevailing conditions to produce a commodity.

Unlike individual labour hours in the classical labour theory of value formulated by Adam Smith and David Ricardo, Marx's exchange value is conceived as a proportion (or 'aliquot part') of society's labour-time.

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Labour theory of value in the context of Mutualism (economic theory)

Mutualism is an anarchist school of thought and economic theory that advocates for workers' control of the means of production, a free market made up of individual artisans, sole proprietorships and workers' cooperatives, and occupation and use property rights. As proponents of the labour theory of value and labour theory of property, mutualists oppose all forms of economic rent, profit and non-nominal interest, which they see as relying on the exploitation of labour. Mutualists seek to construct an economy without capital accumulation or concentration of land ownership. They also encourage the establishment of workers' self-management, which they propose could be supported through the issuance of mutual credit by mutual banks, with the aim of creating a federal society.

Mutualism has its roots in the utopian socialism of Robert Owen and Charles Fourier. It first developed a practical expression in Josiah Warren's community experiments in the United States, which he established according to the principles of equitable commerce based on a system of labor notes. Mutualism was first formulated into a comprehensive economic theory by the French anarchist Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, who proposed the abolition of unequal exchange and the establishment of a new economic system based on reciprocity. In order to establish such a system, he proposed the creation of a "People's Bank" that could issue mutual credit to workers and eventually replace the state; although his own attempts to establish such a system were foiled by the 1851 French coup d'état.

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Labour theory of value in the context of Islamic economics

Islamic economics (Arabic: الاقتصاد الإسلامي) refers to the knowledge of economics or economic activities and processes in terms of Islamic principles and teachings. Islam has a set of specific moral norms and values about individual and social economic behavior. Therefore, it has its own economic system, which is based on its philosophical views and is compatible with the Islamic organization of other aspects of human behavior: social and political systems.

Islamic economics is a broad field, related to the more specific subset of Islamic commercial jurisprudence (Arabic: فقه المعاملات, fiqh al-mu'āmalāt). It is also an ideology of economics similar to the labour theory of value, which is "labour-based exchange and exchange-based labour". While there are differences between the two, Islamic economics still tends to be closer to labor theory rather than subjective theory.

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