Neoliberalism and Its Societal Impacts

Neoliberalism emerged in the late twentieth century as a political-economic paradigm privileging market mechanisms over state intervention. This approach championed privatisation, deregulation and fiscal austerity as pathways to economic growth. Over recent decades, these policies have reshaped public services, labour markets, urban landscapes and social-welfare systems across the globe. Societal impacts include heightened income and wealth inequalities, the erosion of collective provision and the proliferation of precarious forms of employment. In urban contexts, entrepreneurial governance has transformed cityscapes, favouring large-scale property developments and public–private partnerships. In the digital realm, the framing of citizens as consumers has exacerbated divisions, particularly among marginalised communities. Meanwhile, the narrow focus on market-based exchange value has influenced crisis-management strategies—from financial downturns to the Covid-19 pandemic—often at the expense of broader social and ecological well-being. Interdisciplinary research now seeks to unpack these dynamics and propose frameworks for more resilient and inclusive futures.

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Neoliberalism and Its Societal Impacts publication trend

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Technical terms

Neoliberalism: A political and economic ideology that emphasises market deregulation, privatisation, fiscal austerity and the reduction of state intervention.

Biopolitics: The governance of populations through policies and practices that manage life, health and risk at the societal level.

Exchange value: The market-determined worth of goods or services, measured solely by their capacity to generate profit or trade.

References

1. Digital citizenship and disability in the covid era. New Media & Society (2024).
2. The unbearable lightness of neoliberalism: Monsters, ghosts, and the poetics of neoliberal infrastructures. Political Geography (2024).
3. Neoliberal economics, planetary health, and the COVID-19 pandemic: a Marxist ecofeminist analysis. The Lancet Planetary Health (2020).