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Caroline Gerschlager, Monika Mokre 
 
Call for Papers: 
19th Women's Conference 
at the Vienna University for Economics and Business Administration 
 
Women in the Exchange Society 
(Self-)Deception and Other Imponderables 
 
Vienna, June, 16th and 17th, 2000 
 
The conviction that societies are based on principles of exchange  
is deeply rooted in modern self-understanding. The outstanding  
importance those societies attribute to exchange in the  
commercial sense is perhaps the most obvious evidence for the  
truth of this statement. However, exchange cannot be reduced to  
the economic sphere as such (the market), but has to be regarded  
as fundamental for the modern understanding of social relations in  
general. The continued interest in theories of exchange also  
outside the field of economics proper is an important sign of this  
phenomenon ("reciprocity", "rational choice").   
 
Against this background, the exchange society concept  
constitutes the setting and theoretical framework for the problem  
upon which we will focus, that being the particular relation of  
deception to exchange. The idea of this relation is in no way new:  
Adam Smith, for example, the founder of political economy who  
laid the theoretical fundamentals of exchange as a commercial  
system, also gave illustrious examples of self-deception and  
illusions in exchange. According to him, it "is deception which  
rouses and keeps in continual motion the industry of mankind",  
thus acknowledging the vital part that deception plays in the  
functioning of his system in general. In doing so, Smith gave  
special credit to what is often seen as a mere nuisance.   
 
Assuming he was right and that illusions and self-deception have  
found an ideal breeding ground in the functioning of the market  
system, the question may be raised whether this is also true of  
other forms of exchange. If illusion, false pretence, flattery,  
persuasion and seduction, lies and deceit, whispers, posturing,  
wearing a mask, hiding behind conventions, playing a role for  
others and for oneself are so much the rule among humans, it is  
only likely that they are present in all forms of their exchanges.  
This is why the further exploration of this relationship between  
exchange and deception was chosen as the principal approach for  
the conference.   
 
The "Exchange society" has distinguished forms of social  
exchange on the basis of their autonomy, by recognising their  
liberation from the social context in general. This is why we have  
decided to stress the problems of (self-)deception as they appear  
in three areas of research which are characteristic in this respect:  
the free market, the (autonomous) sciences and the (independent)  
arts.   
 
DECEPTION, SELF-DECEPTION and WOMEN 
 
What is the reason for deception in exchange as seen from a  
woman's perspective? In how far are the problems of deception  
studied within the framework of exchange theories? Does the  
conceptual framework of "exchange theories" help or hinder us to  
in the exploration of the question of women and (self-)deception?   
 
What does the concept of autonomy mean in the market, in  
science and the arts with reference to gender questions? [e.g.:  
Does the free (little or non-regulated) market help or hinder gender  
equality? Is wealth gender neutral? Is money gender neutral?]   
 
What forms of deception are particularly linked with women's  
position in the "exchange society"? Are the rules of exchange  
gender specific (i.e. masculine)? [e. g. How are women deceived  
by the abstraction of power relations and gender inequality (what  
about power relations and their influence on market values as well  
as scientific or artistic success, unequal assessment of artistic  
qualities, fraud and disregard of copyrights?)] Which strategies of  
mediation (that is camouflage) are provoked by the presence of  
women within the different fields of exchange?   
 
What kind of manifest deceptions and self-deceptions between  
women and men may be brought to the fore, when we look at  
exchange and its functioning from our women's perspective? What  
kind of illusions help or hinder women in the planning of their  
individual career? (In which way does an image of possible  
success influence individual developments (in a way similar to the  
dreams of Adam Smith's "poor man's son")?   
 
We thus invite women to submit proposals highlighting the concept  
of exchange and its peculiar relationship to (self-)deception and  
other imponderables while focussing their analysis on the market,  
science and the arts.   
 
Prospective participants should send an abstract not later than  
April, 15th 2000. They will be informed of the decision of the paper  
selection committee till May, 15th 2000.   
 
If possible, we would ask you to send the abstract as an E-Mail- 
attachment (Format: RTF) to Caroline Gerschlager: cgerschl@wu- 
wien.ac.at or Monika Mokre: [log in to unmask]   
 
Otherwise, we would need a floppy disk. Please, send proposals to: 
 
Dr. Caroline Gerschlager 
Institut fuer Volkswirtschaftslehre und Volkswirtschaftspolitik III 
WU-Wien 
Augasse 2-6 
A-1090 Wien/Vienna 
Phone: ++43 1 31 33 6 /4515 
Fax: ++43 1 31 33 6/726 
 
A publication of the conference papers is planned. For this reason  
the participating women should bring a final version of their paper to  
the workshop.   
 
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