The Varieties of Economic Rationality: From Adam Smith to Contemporary Behavioural and Evolutionary Economics

187 Pages·2014·1.233 MB·English

by  Michel Zouboulakis

The Varieties of Economic
Rationality
This book explores the central concept every economist or social thinker
uses to describe how people behave in their economic relations. The
concept of economic rationality commonly stipulates that every person
behaves as a rational maximizer, calculating the gains and losses from
every economic decision taken.
Applying the methods of the history of economic thought, with textual
exegesis and as close as possible to the meaning of the original text, this
historical account focuses on the work of those economists who have sig-
nificantly contributed to the creation of a new concept of economic ration-
ality. This book examines the contributions of Adam Smith, John Stuart
Mill, Vilfredo Pareto, Lionel Robbins, Herbert Simon, and others.
The idea of a monolithic way of economic thinking is challenged and
the reader will discover that economists used in the past, and continue to
use, many different paths of thought about how economic agents behave.
Furthermore, it is asserted that economics can no more pretend to explain
economic reality unless it abandons the atomistic view of the rational indi-
vidual choosing freely.
Michel S. Zouboulakis is Professor in the History and Methodology of
Economics at the University of Thessaly, Greece.
Routledge studies in the history of economics
1 Economics as Literature 8 The History of Game Theory,
Willie Henderson Vol. 1
From the beginnings to 1945
2 Socialism and Marginalism in
Robert W. Dimand and
Economics 1870–1930
Mary Ann Dimand
Edited by Ian Steedman
3 Hayek’s Political Economy 9 The Economics of W.S. Jevons
The socio- economics of order Sandra Peart
Steve Fleetwood
10 Gandhi’s Economic Thought
4 On the Origins of Classical
Ajit K. Dasgupta
Economics
Distribution and value from
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William Petty to Adam Smith
Theory
Tony Aspromourgos
Edited by Giovanni Caravale
5 The Economics of Joan
Robinson 12 Austrian Economics in
Edited by Maria Cristina Debate
Marcuzzo, Luigi Pasinetti and Edited by Willem Keizer,
Alesandro Roncaglia Bert Tieben and Rudy van Zijp
6 The Evolutionist Economics
13 Ancient Economic Thought
of Léon Walras
Edited by B.B. Price
Albert Jolink
7 Keynes and the “Classics” 14 The Political Economy of
A study in language, Social Credit and Guild
epistemology and mistaken Socialism
identities Frances Hutchinson and
Michel Verdon Brian Burkitt
15 Economic Careers 23 The Founding of Institutional
Economics and economists in Economics
Britain 1930–1970 The leisure class and
Keith Tribe sovereignty
Edited by Warren J. Samuels
16 Understanding “Classical”
Economics
24 Evolution of Austrian
Studies in the long-p eriod
Economics
theory
From Menger to Lachmann
Heinz Kurz and Neri Salvadori
Sandye Gloria
17 History of Environmental
25 Marx’s Concept of Money
Economic Thought
The God of Commodities
E. Kula
Anitra Nelson
18 Economic Thought in
Communist and Post- 26 The Economics of James
Communist Europe Steuart
Edited by Edited by Ramón Tortajada
Hans- Jürgen Wagener
27 The Development of
19 Studies in the History of Economics in Europe since
French Political Economy 1945
From Bodin to Walras Edited by A.W. Bob Coats
Edited by Gilbert Faccarello
28 The Canon in the History of
20 The Economics of John Rae
Economics
Edited by O.F. Hamouda,
Critical essays
C. Lee and D. Mair
Edited by
Michalis Psalidopoulos
21 Keynes and the Neoclassical
Synthesis
Einsteinian versus Newtonian 29 Money and Growth
macroeconomics Selected papers of
Teodoro Dario Togati Allyn Abbott Young
Edited by Perry G. Mehrling
22 Historical Perspectives on and Roger J. Sandilands
Macroeconomics
Sixty years after the “General 30 The Social Economics of
Theory” Jean- Baptiste Say
Edited by Philippe Fontaine Markets and virtue
and Albert Jolink Evelyn L. Forget
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Laissez- Faire Disequilibrium in Economic
The economics of Theory
Pierre de Boisguilbert The Marshall–Walras divide
Gilbert Faccarello Michel de Vroey
32 John Ruskin’s Political 40 The German Historical
Economy School
Willie Henderson The historical and ethical
approach to economics
33 Contributions to the History Edited by Yuichi Shionoya
of Economic Thought
Essays in honour of 41 Reflections on the Classical
R.D.C. Black Canon in Economics
Edited by Antoin E. Murphy Essays in honour of
and Renee Prendergast Samuel Hollander
Edited by Sandra Peart and
34 Towards an Unknown Marx
Evelyn Forget
A commentary on the
manuscripts of 1861–63
42 Piero Sraffa’s Political
Enrique Dussel
Economy
A centenary estimate
35 Economics and
Edited by Terenzio Cozzi and
Interdisciplinary Exchange
Roberto Marchionatti
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Thought Schumpeter to Economics
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G.L.S. Shackle institutional change
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and Peter Earl Cecile Dangel
37 The Decline of Ricardian 44 On the Development of Long-
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Politics and economics in Tom Kompas
post- Ricardian theory
Susan Pashkoff 45 F.A. Hayek as a Political
Economist
38 Piero Sraffa Economic analysis and values
His life, thought and cultural Edited by Jack Birner,
heritage Pierre Garrouste and
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Society Essays in memory of Giovanni
The mechanical analogy Caravale
Michael McLure Sergio Nisticò and
Domenico Tosato
47 The Cambridge
53 Economic Thought and
Controversies in Capital
Policy in Less Developed
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Europe
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The nineteenth century
development
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Jack Birner
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Six studies of the work of Economics
doctor- economists Peter Groenewegen
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in the Scottish Enlightenment
50 The Spread of Political
Edited by Tatsuya Sakamoto
Economy and the
and Hideo Tanaka
Professionalisation of
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57 Classics and Moderns in
Economic societies in Europe,
Economics, Volume I
America and Japan in the
Essays on nineteenth and
nineteenth century
twentieth century economic
Massimo Augello and
thought
Marco Guidi
Peter Groenewegen
51 Historians of Economics and 58 Classics and Moderns in
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The construction of disciplinary Essays on nineteenth and
memory twentieth century economic
Steven G. Medema and thought
Warren J. Samuels Peter Groenewegen
59 Marshall’s Evolutionary 67 Essays in the History of
Economics Economics
Tiziano Raffaelli Warren J. Samuels,
Willie Henderson,
60 Money, Time and Rationality Kirk D. Johnson and
in Max Weber Marianne Johnson
Austrian connections
68 History and Political Economy
Stephen D. Parsons
Essays in honour of
P.D. Groenewegen
61 Classical Macroeconomics
Edited by Tony Aspromourgos
Some modern variations and
and John Lodewijks
distortions
James C.W. Ahiakpor
69 The Tradition of Free Trade
Lars Magnusson
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Japan Process
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economics
63 Classical Economics and Edited by Michel Bellet,
Modern Theory Sandye Gloria- Palermo and
Studies in long-p eriod analysis Abdallah Zouache
Heinz D. Kurz and
71 Consumption as an Investment
Neri Salvadori
The fear of goods from Hesiod
to Adam Smith
64 A Bibliography of Female
Cosimo Perrotta
Economic Thought to 1940
Kirsten K. Madden,
72 Jean- Baptiste Say and the
Janet A. Sietz and
Classical Canon in Economics
Michele Pujol
The British connection in
French classicism
65 Economics, Economists and
Samuel Hollander
Expectations
From microfoundations to 73 Knut Wicksell on Poverty
macroeconomics No place is too exalted
Warren Young, Robert Leeson Knut Wicksell
and William Darity Jnr.
74 Economists in Cambridge
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Public Finance in Britain, correspondence 1907–1946
1767–1873 Edited by M.C. Marcuzzo and
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History of Economics Theory
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and Robert Leonard Stigler correspondence,
1945–1957
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Mathematical Economics and Claire H. Hammond
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80 Evaluating Adam Smith Fiorenzo Mornati)
Creating the wealth of nations
Willie Henderson 88 The Years of High
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flourishing in historical economics
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Luigino Bruni
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90 Interpreting Classical 98 Frank Knight and the
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Why the great depression did Essays in honour of
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