The economic approach to human behaviour under scrutiny: an overview of arguments for the autonomy of social action

2001 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 195-240
Author(s):  
Milan Z. Zafirovski
Keyword(s):  
Social Action ◽  
Utility Maximization ◽  
Human Behaviour ◽  
Economic Approach ◽  
Homo Economicus ◽  
Economic Behaviour ◽  
Major Argument ◽  
Special Case

The article reviews and re-examines some arguments against the treatment of social action within the economic approach as an extension of economic behaviour/rationality and thus against its denial of the specific, irreducible nature of the extra-economic. A major argument is that social action is a sui generis phenomenon that cannot be reduced with theoretical impunity to its economic modalities. Social action is characterized by substantial autonomy relative to economic behaviour/rationality. Arguments about the autonomous character of social action seek to remedy the indiscriminate extension of the economic approach beyond the field of economy to all human behaviour construed as consistent utility maximization. These arguments adduce certain classes of factors (socio-psychological, socio-cultural, socio-systemic and others) contributing toward the autonomy of social action. In addition, the economic-approach treatment of the human actor as Homo economicus is reversed by conceiving the economy as a domain of social action of which economic behaviour is a special case.

Endogenous Uncertainty and the Dynamics of Constraints

2019 ◽  
pp. 246-260
Author(s):  
Paul Humphreys
Keyword(s):  
Utility Maximization ◽  
Social Dynamics ◽  
Fitness Landscape ◽  
Agent Based Model ◽  
Agent Based ◽  
Endogenous Uncertainty ◽  
The Commons ◽  
Simulation Results ◽  
Special Case

An agent- based model of social dynamics is introduced using a deformable fitness landscape, and it is shown that in certain clearly specifiable situations, strategies that are different from utility maximization outperform utility maximizers. Simulation results are presented and intuitive interpretations of the results provided. The situations considered occur when individuals' actions affect the outcomes for other agents and endogenous effects are dominant. The Tragedy of the Commons is merely a special case of this. Arguments are given that constraints are to be encouraged in some circumstances. The appropriate role of constraints in various types of society is assessed and their use justified in identifiable types of situations.

scholarly journals The Economics of Suicide

2009 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 8-13
Author(s):  
Damian Valery ◽  
Praveen Miranda ◽  
Hrishikesh Pande
Keyword(s):  
Human Behaviour ◽  
Economic Approach ◽  
System A ◽  
Gary Becker ◽  
Shotgun Wound ◽  
Kurt Cobain ◽  
A Site ◽  
Commit Suicide

On April 8th 1994 Kurt Cobain, the lead singer of Nirvana, was found dead in his Seattle home of an apparent shotgun wound to the head and with three times the lethal amount of heroin in his system. A note lay at the scene. The verdict was suicide. Others are sceptical.’ (from www.deathofkurtcobain.com) In the pall of gloom surrounding Michael Jackson’s recent death when we read this extract from a site dedicated to Kurt Cobain, a number of questions struck us as being interesting. Why do famous celebrities commit suicide? Could the reasons be monetary, social or some other phenomenon? Why would such renowned personalities give up an apparent life of luxury? In furthering our understanding of these issues it strikes us as pertinent to ask whether we can ever view suicide from the perspective of an economist. Can we assess human behaviour pertaining to suicide using the ration al science of economics or are we treading on unknown territory in psychiatry instead? Consider a quote by the famous economist Gary Becker from his book The Economic Approach to Human Behaviour’

Multiple-Criteria Optimization: A More General Approach

1977 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 345-350 ◽  
Author(s):  
R V Eastin
Keyword(s):  
Utility Maximization ◽  
Goal Achievement ◽  
Multiple Criteria ◽  
Multiple Criteria Optimization ◽  
Special Case

An earlier article in this journal (Roy, 1974) explored an alternative multiple-criteria optimization condition in which relative goal satisfaction takes lexicographic priority over absolute goal achievement. The present paper attempts to clarify the implications of such an approach and to show that it can be a special case of a more general, fairly standard utility maximization model.

scholarly journals Do Online Illicit Drug Market Exchanges Afford Rationality?

2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (4) ◽  
pp. 302-319
Author(s):  
Andrew Childs ◽  
Ross Coomber ◽  
Melissa Bull
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Rational Choice ◽  
Utility Maximization ◽  
Illicit Drug ◽  
Drug Market ◽  
Drug Markets ◽  
Homo Economicus ◽  
Online Spaces ◽  
Key Aspects ◽  
Technological Affordances

Rational choice perspectives have been the dominant models used for conceptualizing the nature of exchanges in illicit drug markets, but various critiques have found these abstracted assumptions inadequate for understanding concrete illicit drug market activity. Considerably less, however, is known about key aspects of rationality in exchanges within online drug markets. Recognizing the inadequacies of an underlying homo economicus, we instead conceive drug market exchanges as complex assemblages, noting how exchanges are reconstructed in online spaces, and technological affordances may facilitate elements of rationality in drug exchanges. Adopting these notions allows us to argue that aspects of rationality can potentially contribute to an understanding of exchange practices in online markets, and that online channels can afford assumptions of utility-maximization, rich market information to guide decision-making, and anonymity in the exchange. In addition, consideration is given to the structural variability of online illicit drug markets, and that the affordance of rationality should be considered across a spectrum of applicability that takes into account the specifics of each dimension of online drug market (i.e. drug cryptomarkets, illicit online pharmacies, and “app-based” drug markets).

scholarly journals TEORI RASIONALITAS DALAM PANDANGAN ILMU EKONOMI ISLAM

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 34
Author(s):  
Herlan Firmansyah
Keyword(s):  
Islamic Law ◽  
Socialist Economy ◽  
Economic Rationality ◽  
Homo Economicus ◽  
Economic Behaviour ◽  
Basic Model ◽  
Islamic Economic ◽  
Rationality Theory ◽  
Economic Motives ◽  
Islamic Values

ABSTRAKPandangan tentang konsep rasionalitas memiliki konsekuensi terhadap perilaku manusia dalam melakukan tindakan ekonomi dan tujuan-tujuan hidupnya. Rasionalitas ekonomi yang dibangun oleh konsepsi homo economicus sebagaimana dikembangkan dalam ekonomi kapitalis dan sosialis berbeda dengan rasionalitas ekonomi yang dibangun oleh konsepsi homo islamicus sebagaimana dikembangkan dalam ekonomi Islam. Tujuan dari artikel ini yaitu untuk menganalisis teori rasionalitas dalam perspektif ekonomi Islam. Kesimpulan dari artikel ini yaitu banyak ekonom Muslim yang tidak puas dengan konsep homo economicus sebagai model dasar perilaku ekonomi manusia. Karena itulah, ekonom Muslim pun menggantinya dengan konsepsi homo islamicus sebagai model dasar perilaku ekonomi yang sesuai dengan fitrah hakiki manusia. Istilah  homo islamicus mengacu kepada perilaku individu yang dibimbing oleh nilai-nilai Islam. Rasonalitas yang dibangun oleh konsepsi homo islamicus berpandangan bahwa segenap tindakan ekonomi tidak hanya menuruti hasrat-hasrat alamiah manusia tetapi harus didasarkan kepada kebenaran dan kebajikan. Jalan untuk mencapai rasionalitas ini tidak lain adalah mensubordinatkan motif, pikiran, orientasi, kehendak dan perilau ekonomi kepada aturan dan moralitas yang ditentukan oleh syariat Islam. ABSTRACTThe view of the concept of rationality has consequences for human behaviour in carrying out economic actions and life goals. The economic rationality built by the conception of homo economicus as developed in a capitalist and socialist economy is different from the economic rationality built by the conception of homo islamicus as developed in Islamic economics. The purpose of this article is to analyze the rationality theory from an Islamic economic perspective. The conclusion of this article is that many Muslim economists are dissatisfied with the concept of homo economicus as a basic model of human economic behaviour. For this reason, Muslim economists also replaced it with the conception of homo islamicus as a basic model of economic behaviour in accordance with human nature. The term homo islamicus refers to individual behaviour that is guided by Islamic values. The rationality built by the conception of homo Islamic holds that all economic activity does not only comply with natural human desires but must be based on truth and virtue. The way to achieve this rationality is none other than subordinating economic motives, thoughts, orientation, will and behaviour to the rules and morality determined by Islamic law.  

scholarly journals The Phenomenology of Homo Economicus

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-50
Author(s):  
Galit Ailon
Keyword(s):  
Social Action ◽  
Atomistic Model ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Homo Economicus ◽  
Market Society ◽  
Making Sense ◽  
Self Interest ◽  
Economic Interaction ◽  
Alternative Sources ◽  
Interpretive Scheme

Much has been written about the fictitious nature of the atomistic model of homo economicus. Nevertheless, this economic model of self-interest and egoism has become conventional wisdom in market societies. This article offers a phenomenological explanation for the model’s commonsensical grip. Building on the work of Alfred Schutz, I argue that a reliance on homo economicus as an interpretive scheme for making sense of the behavior of economic Others has the effect of reversing the meaning of signs and doubts that challenge the model’s assumptions. Moreover, it orients social action in ways that prevent the model’s interpretive incongruences from rising to the reflective fore. Consequently, an interpretive reliance on homo economicus creates a “phenomenological gridlock.” Alternative sources of information and alternative interpretive schemes can bypass this entrapment of the economic interaction, but this article further explains why the norms and cultural horizons of market society limit the accessibility of these alternatives, thus, in effect, sedimenting gridlocked experiences.

scholarly journals Behavioural Economics and Economic Behaviour in Classical Athens

2018 ◽  
pp. 15-46 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Lewis
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Economic Activity ◽  
Institutional Economics ◽  
Behavioural Economics ◽  
New Institutional Economics ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Homo Economicus ◽  
Economic Behaviour ◽  
Analytical Tools

This chapter analyses the motivations of economic actors in classical Athens from the point of view of modern behavioural economics. The (now) old orthodoxy of M.I. Finley, drawing on Bücher and Weber, stressed that the so‐ called homo economicus did not exist until recent times: in antiquity, an anti‐productive mentality was essentially hard‐wired into the minds of elite Greeks and Romans, preventing economic development. This approach has been widely rejected in recent years, and in particular the methods of New Institutional Economics (NIE) have provided a way around the moribund formalist‐primitivist debate. Yet whilst NIE has provided a set of important analytical tools, it would be an exaggeration to claim that these tools can solve every problem relating to economic activity in antiquity; here, the insights of behavioural economics can assist us in understanding economic activity in past societies.

scholarly journals Más allá de las percepciones: emergencia de subjetividades socioambientales en una región subcuenca de Acapulco, Guerrero

2021 ◽  
pp. 116
Author(s):  
Erick Alfonso Galán Castro
Keyword(s):  
Social Action ◽  
Degradation Process ◽  
Environmental Conflict ◽  
Urban Spaces ◽  
Homo Economicus ◽  
Criminal Violence ◽  
Illegal Disposal ◽  
Technological Impact ◽  
Del Rio ◽  
Basin Region

El objetivo de este trabajo es analizar las subjetividades emergentes en la relación sociedad-naturaleza, en las comunidades y espacios urbanos de la subcuenca del río La Sabana-Laguna de Tres Palos, la cual se caracteriza por el proceso de degradación del ecosistema ribereño, a causa de la disposición ilegal de residuos sólidos y la descarga de aguas negras, así como de la creciente violencia criminal en la zona. Parte del estudio de la gubernamentalidad, así como del análisis cualitativo de experiencias acerca del conflicto socioambiental, para proponer dos formas de construcción de sentido y de acción social: una biopolítica socioambiental (homo economicus), basada en la incidencia tecnificada sobre el problema, aunque carente de crítica hacia el modelo económico; y una necropolítica socioambiental (endriago), que responde al abandono estatal y genera acciones para la sobrevivencia, aunque fuera de la legalidad y contra la vida de otros.Palabras clave: Gubernamentalidad, Conflicto socioambiental, Subjetividades emergentes Beyond perceptions. Emergence of socio-environmental subjectivities in a sub-basin region of Acapulco, GuerreroSummaryThe objective of this work is to analyze the emerging subjectivities in the society-nature relationship, in the communities and urban spaces of the sub-basin of the La Sabana-Laguna de Tres Palos river, which is characterized by the degradation process of the riparian ecosystem, due to the illegal disposal of solid waste and the discharge of sewage, as well as the increasing criminal violence in the area. It is based on the study of governmentality, as well as the qualitative analysis of experiences about the socio-environmental conflict, to propose two forms of construction of meaning and social action: a socio-environmental bio-politics (homo economicus), based on the technological impact on the problem, although lacking criticism of the economic model; and a socio-environmental necro-politics (endriago), which responds to state abandonment and generates actions for survival, although outside of legality and against the lives of others.Keywords: Governmentality, Socio-environmental conflict, Emerging subjectivities Ailleurs des perceptions. Émergence de subjectivités socio environnementales  dans une région sous bassin d’Acapulco, GuerreroRésuméL’objectif de ce travail est celui d’analyser les subjectivités émergeantes dans la relation société-nature, dans les communautés et espaces urbains du sous bassin de la rivière  La Sabana-Laguna de Tres Palos, qui se caractérise par le processus de dégradation de l’écosystème riverain, à cause de la disposition illégale de résidus solides et la décharge des eaux d'égout, ainsi que de la croissante violence criminelle de la zone. On part de l’étude de la gouvernabilité, ainsi que de l’analyse qualitative d’expériences à propos le conflit socio environnementale, pour proposer deux formes de construction de sens et d’action sociale : une biopolitique socio environnementale (homo economicus), basée dans l’incidence technicisée sur le problème, même dépourvu de critique envers le modèle économique ; et une nécro politique socio environnementale (endriago), qui répond à l’abandon de l’état et génère des actions pour la survivance, même hors de la légalité et contre la vie des autres.Mots clés : Gouvernabilité, Conflit socio environnemental, Subjectivités émergentes 

Extreme self-sacrifice beyond fusion: Moral expansiveness and the special case of allyship

2018 ◽  
Vol 41 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Crimston ◽  
Matthew J. Hornsey
Keyword(s):  
General Theory ◽  
Biological Markers ◽  
Natural Environment ◽  
Relevant Dimension ◽  
Special Case

AbstractAs a general theory of extreme self-sacrifice, Whitehouse's article misses one relevant dimension: people's willingness to fight and die in support of entities not bound by biological markers or ancestral kinship (allyship). We discuss research on moral expansiveness, which highlights individuals’ capacity to self-sacrifice for targets that lie outside traditional in-group markers, including racial out-groups, animals, and the natural environment.

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