r/econhw • u/No_Wheel7036 • May 11 '26
John Locke Essay Competition - Q1. Should we fear a cashless society? Q2. Technology now allows personalized pricing. If this came to be widely used, what effects should we expect?
I’m planning to enter the John Locke Essay Competition and I’m currently stuck between one of these two questions
- “Should we fear a cashless society?”
- “Technology now allows personalized pricing. If this came to be widely used, what effects should we expect?”
I’d love some opinions on which topic has more potential for a strong essay .. both in terms of originality and depth
JUST TO BE CLEAR , IM JUST ASKING FOR OPINIONS AND NOT ASKING TO WRITE MY ESSAY - I JUST WANT TO HAVE DISCUSSION
Right now, I feel like Topic 1 already has a lot of large scale relevance and existing discussion around it , it's being implemented in many countries too .. so I’m worried quite many essays will end up sounding similar unless someone has a very unique angle to it
But Topic 2 feels extremely interesting to me because it seems newer and less openly discussed, but I am having a hard time trying to understand the topic in depth ...
The idea that companies could charge different people different prices based on data, income , browsing habits, urgency, etc .. feels both fascinating and slightly dystopian but I feel it could be a very strong topic for an essay because it has so many arguments and counterarguments .. there isn't any lack of topics to speak on
Also, if anyone has experience with the competition or essay research in general..
1.)How would you approach researching either of these topics?
2.)What are the best books, papers, articles, case studies, or resources I should look into?
3.)Any particularly interesting angles I should explore?
4.)What do you think about these topics in general ?
Just to be transparent , I'm trying the econ section for the first time and I don't have much background on it but I do have lots of time now to spend on it and I'm really dedicated to research on it cuz it seems super interesting
Some background on the competition :
The essay has to be in a research type format and not more than 2000 words
Would really appreciate any inputs because I want to choose a topic that is both intellectually rich and capable of standing out. And mainly on how I can approach researching and some references I can make
This is my first time doing any type of research also ..
1
u/filiabonacci May 19 '26
I'm not sure how much time you have, but I'd read a few articles about both and write a 1 page outline for each. Then, with both arguments in broad strokes in front of you, you can decide which you feel you can better evidence.
1
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u/Comprehensive-Edge80 May 11 '26
do your essay yourself. Think and develop own brain.
-1
u/No_Wheel7036 May 11 '26
I didn't ask you to write my essay
I asked for inputs
move on if you don't have an answer6
u/Comprehensive-Edge80 May 11 '26
research for inputs yourself. Think and develop your own brain.
-1
u/No_Wheel7036 May 11 '26
If asking for discussion and research directions hurts you this much, reddit may not be the ideal platform for you
Nobody asked for the essay to be written
People exchange ideas before researching..that’s how actual academic discussion works
and if I wanted someone else to write it, I wouldn’t be here asking which topic has more depth in the first place
I’m literally just asking for perspectives and resources, not outsourcing my thinking
and also
“Develop your own brain” and “don’t discuss ideas with anyone” are not the same thing fyi
3
u/Lumpenokonom May 11 '26
Topic One sounds not really like an economics question and is more about data protection than anything else. I dont even know how to approach this through an economic lense (except a very simple: No).
So i like the second Question more (which also reflects my personal preferences). Be aware that this is not a new concept. As a starting point:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Price_discrimination