AbstractRITA WINBORNE. Blockchain and The Transformation of Inequitable Markets. (Under the direction of DR. SUNIL EREVELLES)Markets are inherently inequitable. Markets replicate historical social norms and outdated business beliefs, they perpetuate systemic institutionalized culture and biases, they bolster unbalanced hierarchies innately built into market structures, they have unequal distributions of wealth, resources, and power, they inherently promote a "winner-take-all" mentality, they favor unfair competition between privileged incumbents and underprivileged newcomers, and they are built on inherited means or capital. This results in a gap between the privileged and the underprivileged, including gaps in trust, security, transparency, privacy, disintermediation, and monetary freedom. Blockchain has emerged as a non-linear shift to fill those gaps. It represents a profound paradigm shift from a marketplace that shares information to one that shares value. This results in greater upward mobility, economic freedom, equity in opportunities, reduced generational poverty, etc. In this research, an initial theoretical framework is first developed for "blockchain in inequitable markets," utilizing Hunt’s indigenous theory development inductive realist methodology. Then, an empirical analysis was conducted using data from an underprivileged marketplace - undocumented immigrants from El Salvador. Blockchain-centric solutions for inequitable markets are then discussed to answer a call to action for better marketing for a better world (BMBW). The initial theoretical framework may provide a foundation for future academic research on blockchain and inequitable markets. Suggestions for future research and guidelines for practitioners are finally provided.
