5792343888

Paweł Drobny

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Humań Capital - A Presentation of Neoclassical Theory and the Austrian School

The theory of human Capital has its origin in the neoclassical school of economics and grew out of the search for new production factors that influence economic growth. However, this theory lacks a definition of human Capital. Other individual theories focus in their definitions only on singular elements, the dominant one of which is knowledge gained in the widely understood educational process. These theories do not describe the structure of human Capital either. Their structure of human Capital has a homogeneous character. In the author’s opinion, reasons for that have their basis in the lack of unambiguous theory of Capital and in the theoretical foundations of the main economic current as well as in methodology. The conseąuence of formulating the theory of human Capital in this way is that numerous charges are levied against it and the postulates regarding economic policy in particular countries laid out by economists are very generał. This formulation favours social engineering. The author is searching for an alternative definition in the Austrian School. Based on the schooTs theory of human Capital and referring to Hernando de Soto’ research, he defines human Capital as a potential which is in both acąuired and inborn human skills and is significant from the point of view of the given plan of one’s action. This potential becomes Capital if it is defined and realised in a formal system of property. The definition has not only a praxeological character but also a personal one, which makes it a morę robust description of reality than a definition of human Capital elaborated on the grounds of the theory of the main current.