Conscious economics: Reconstructing economic agency through rational egoism and ontological accountability
Sustainable Economies June 9, 2025 Jeffrey Overall 2 citations
This article introduces conscious economics, a paradigm that combines rational egoism with consciousness expansion to redefine economic agency as ethically self-aware and developmentally oriented. Drawing on Kohlberg's cognitive moral development and Maslow's self-transcendence, the framework positions ethical self-interest as a function of ontological integration, self-transcendence, and intergenerational accountability. It reframes economic rationality through cognitive and spiritual development, challenging assumptions of moral neutrality in markets, and introduces ontological accountability to extend the temporal and metaphysical scope of economic decision-making. The article concludes by identifying structural barriers to implementation and offers solutions rooted in moral cultivation, institutional redesign, and consciousness-based practices.