All social and economic exchange requires buyers and sellers to determine and agree upon a particular value. Yet value is often muddy and contested, and arriving at consensus in value seems particularly challenging when values differ. For example, how do art galleries and collectors arrive at an objective value for a work or art? How do people determine what has value and how do they quantify that value?

Scholars of economics, sociology, and management have long sought to understand how value is determined. Existing research ranges from formal models of financial markets to ethnographic studies of cultural markets, but is often conducted in disciplinary silos and does not readily appear to share any common theories or frameworks.

The inaugural Values and Valuations Conference aims to bring together a diverse group of academics and practitioners to explore innovative questions surrounding the study of valuation processes. We hope to identify commonalities that can serve to unify the study of valuation processes as well as highlight hidden assumptions that demand further inquiry. A special sub-theme of this conference will focus on the challenges of valuation in emerging technologies such as the Metaverse, cryptocurrencies, and NFTs, where value is hotly contested. In addition to the potential for profound social impact, these technologies highlight the need for an interdisciplinary approach and the potential for fruitful collaborations between academia and industry.

We will begin with breakfast keynote talks where leading scholars representing the fields of economics and sociology will provide an overview of key problems in the study of valuation processes. Three panel sessions will follow, during which academics will share recent research and practitioners will share emerging challenges and insights from industry. Finally, our keynote speakers will provide concluding remarks and chart directions for future research.

For more information, please contact valuesandvaluationsconference@hbs.edu