THE POWER BEHIND THE NUMBERS: A CRITICAL HISTORY OF GDP AS A SOCIOTECHNICAL AND POLITICAL CONSTRUCT

Year 2025, Volume: 15 Issue: 30, 712 - 725

Eren Kırmızıaltın , Duygu Çeri

https://doi.org/10.53092/duiibfd.1712620

Abstract

Gross Domestic Product (GDP), regarded as the fundamental indicator of social welfare, is critically examined in this article not as a neutral economic metric but as a sociotechnical indicator and a tool of power that sustains specific power relations. The paper traces the historical trajectory of GDP, from the “political arithmetic” efforts of the 17th century to the formation of the United Nations System of National Accounts (SNA) under the influence of Keynesian thought. Furthermore, it investigates the political and ideological motivations behind the post-Cold War transition from Gross National Product (GNP) to GDP, arguing that this shift served to obscure global inequalities and reinforce the narrative of globalization.
The article, drawing on Lukes' framework of power analysis, also discusses how GDP contributes to the production of “false consciousness” by disregarding issues such as income inequality and ecological destruction, as well as by devaluing non-economic elements such as care work, which are considered non-economic under the logic of the market economy. In this context, it emphasizes that economic indicators are not merely numerical data but also political constructs that reflect and reproduce power relations.

Keywords

GDP , Power , Sociotechnical , Indicator

RAKAMLARIN ARKASINDAKİ İKTİDAR: SOSYOTEKNİK VE POLİTİK BİR İNŞA OLARAK GSYH'NİN ELEŞTİREL TARİHİ

Abstract

Bu makalede, toplumsal refahın temel göstergesi olarak kabul edilen Gayri Safi Yurt İçi Hasıla (GSYH), tarafsız bir ekonomik ölçüt olarak değil; belirli iktidar ilişkilerini sürdüren, meşrulaştıran ve yeniden üreten bir sosyo-teknik gösterge ve iktidar aracı olarak ele alınmaktadır. Makale, GSYH'nin tarihsel gelişimini, on yedinci yüzyıldaki “politik aritmetik” çabalarından Birleşmiş Milletler Ulusal Hesaplar Sistemi'nin (SNA) oluşumuna kadar izlemektedir. Ayrıca, Soğuk Savaş sonrası dönemde Gayri Safi Milli Hasıla (GSMH) kavramından GSYH kavramına geçişin ardındaki politik ve ideolojik motivasyonları inceleyerek, bu değişimin küresel eşitsizlikleri gizlemeye ve küreselleşme söylemini pekiştirmeye hizmet ettiğini savunmaktadır.
Makalede, Lukes'un iktidar analizi çerçevesinden yararlanılarak, GSYH'nin gelir eşitsizliği ve ekolojik yıkım gibi konuları göz ardı etmekle kalmayıp, aynı zamanda piyasa ekonomisinin mantığı doğrultusunda ekonomik olarak değerlendirilmeyen bakım emeği gibi unsurları değersizleştirerek “yanlış bilinç” üretimine nasıl hizmet ettiği de tartışılmaktadır. Bu bağlamda, ekonomik göstergelerin yalnızca sayısal veriler değil, aynı zamanda iktidar ilişkilerini yansıtan ve yeniden üreten politik inşalar olduğu vurgulanmaktadır.

Keywords

GSYH , İktidar , Sosyoteknik , Gösterge

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