Contributions of Economic Theory to an Understanding of the Common Good in Catholic Social Thought
Economic analysis can be useful to Catholic social thought in its concern for the common good, or the rough economic equivalent, human flourishing. First, treating the standard economic concept of externalities as ubiquitous can result in policies that promote human flourishing. Second, much scholarly work in economics recognizes that under conditions of interdependence and imperfect information, rational self-interest frequently will lead to socially irrational results unless that self-interest is somehow constrained. Two specific changes can better promote the common good: investing in the prospective role of worker-shared ownership and replacing gross domestic product with an accounting system that more accurately measures the well-being of society. These reflections lead to an answer to the question, What is the common good?