scholarly journals Crime and Punishment: Adam Smith’s Theory of Sentimental Law and Economics

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Pia Paganelli ◽  
Fabrizio Simon
Keyword(s):  
Public Good ◽  
Criminal Behavior ◽  
Law And Economics ◽  
Adam Smith ◽  
Unintended Consequence ◽  
Systematic Bias ◽  
The Public ◽  
Legal Sanctions ◽  
Rational Calculation ◽  
The Individual

For Adam Smith a crime is not the result of a rational calculation of loss and gain, but the consequence of envy and a vain desire to parade wealth to attract the approbation of others, combined with a natural systematic bias in overestimating the probability of success. Similarly, Smith does not conceive of legal sanctions as a rational deterrent, but as deriving from the feeling of resentment. While the prevailing approach of the eighteenth century is a rational explanation of crime and a utilitarian use of punishment, Adam Smith instead builds his theory of criminal behavior and legal prosecution consistently on the sentiments. A well-functioning legal system is thus an unintended consequence of our desire to bring justice to the individual person, not the result of a rational calculation to promote the public good, just like a well-functioning economic system is the unintended consequence of our desire to better our own condition, not the result of a rational calculation to promote public good.

Going Far by Going Together: James M. Buchanan’s Economics of Shared Ethics

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Art Carden ◽  
Gregory W. Caskey ◽  
Zachary B. Kessler
Keyword(s):  
Business Ethics ◽  
Economic Analysis ◽  
Public Good ◽  
Public Capital ◽  
The Public ◽  
Economic Progress ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Other Regarding ◽  
Ethical Communication ◽  
Other Regarding Preferences

We explore themes in Nobel Prize–winning economist James M. Buchanan’s work and apply his Ethics and Economic Progress to problems facing individuals and firms. We focus on Buchanan’s analysis of the individual work ethic, his exhortations to “pay the preacher” of the “institutions of moral-ethical communication,” and his notion of law as “public capital.” We highlight several ways people with other-regarding preferences can contribute to social flourishing and some of the ways those who have “affected to trade for the public good” might want to redirect their efforts. We show how Buchanan’s work has considerable implications for business ethics. Just as his economic analysis of politics changed how we understand government, we think his economic analysis of ethics can (and should) change how we understand business.

scholarly journals Corporate Responsibility: In the Dilemma between Fake and Trust?

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 143-147
Author(s):  
Simon Fietze ◽  
Wenzel Matiaske ◽  
Roland Menges
Keyword(s):  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Public Good ◽  
Corporate Responsibility ◽  
Adam Smith ◽  
Invisible Hand ◽  
Social Orientation ◽  
The Public ◽  
Self Interest ◽  
Market Organization ◽  
Corporate Social

The accusation of whitewashing accompanied the discussion about corporate social responsibility (CSR) since its inception the 1950s. That's not surprising. Ever since its beginnings in Scottish moral philosophy, economics did not expect the general good to be enhanced by the individual's social orientation, but rather by its self-interest, a concept less liable to disappointment, and the work of the invisible hand (Hirschman, 1977). The latter aims to promote a common goal that individuals have not intended. Following his famous text, Adam Smith (2007 [1786], p. 350) continues: ‘I have never known much good done by those who affected to trade for the public good.’ The ‘mistrust’ of the ‘goodwill’ of the capitalist lives on in various streams such as Marxism, (neo-)liberalism or sociological system theory, to name but a few schools of thought. Marxists do not expect societal progress any more than (neo-)liberals from benevolent capitalists who, demand more taxable profits, instead of social responsibility, in the framework of the market organization of companies. System theorists find that ethical demands are hardly transferable directly into the economy code of payment/non-payment. Although Adam Smith (2007 [1786], p. 350) shared the view that the claim of public good orientation is ‘indeed, not very common among merchants’, but that ‘very few words need to be employed in dissuading them from it.’

scholarly journals Walk the Talk? The Effect of Voting and Excludability in Public Goods Experiments

2010 ◽  
Vol 2010 ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hans J. Czap ◽  
Natalia V. Czap ◽  
Esmail Bonakdarian
Keyword(s):  
Public Goods ◽  
Public Good ◽  
Driving Forces ◽  
Public Project ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Projects ◽  
Individual Contributions ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Other Regarding

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of voting and excludability on individual contributions to group projects. We conducted two experiments on excludable and nonexcludable public goods, which provided several important results. First, contrary to our expectations, subjects are generally contributing more to the non-excludable compared to the excludable public good. Second, participating in a vote to choose a public project per se makes no difference in contributions. However, if the project that the individual voted for also gets selected by the group, they contribute significantly more to that project. Third, empathy and locus of control are important driving forces of participation in common projects. Our results have implications on the procedural design of obtaining funding for public projects. First, the public should get involved and have a say in the determination of which project should be realized. Second, it might well pay off to attempt to develop a consensus among the population and obtain near unanimous votes, because in our experiment, subjects discriminate between the project they voted for and the project chosen by the majority. Third, the policy proposers should stress the other-regarding interest of the public good rather than just pecuniary incentives.

How Encouraging Niceness Can Incentivize Nastiness: An Unintended Consequence of Advertising Reform

2018 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 147-161 ◽  
Author(s):  
Minah H. Jung ◽  
Clayton R. Critcher
Keyword(s):  
Public Good ◽  
Political Advertising ◽  
Unintended Consequence ◽  
The Public ◽  
Consistent Effect ◽  
Perceived Credibility ◽  
Truth Value ◽  
Ironic Effects

Enacted in an effort to discourage negative political advertising, American regulations mandate that candidates endorse their ads (“My name is ___, and I approve this message.”). Four studies suggest that mandatory endorsements enhance the perceived credibility of some ads these regulations were designed to discourage. This research tests for what types of messages mandatory endorsements have this effect, and why. Mandatory endorsements boosted evaluations of policy-focused attack ads—those typically plagued by overcomeable skepticism—but had no consistent effect on positive or character-focused ads. Mandatory endorsements boost ad believability—largely outside of participants' awareness—for two reasons: (1) the tagline offers a legitimizing association with regulation and (2) the candidates' own personally delivered endorsement language offers an implicit promise of the ads' truth value. The authors discuss how these findings bring order to and extend previous work on mandatory endorsements and ironic effects of communications requirements. Finally, they consider how regulations could be reformed to promote the public good by informing (without misleading) the electorate.

Unions & Civic Engagement: How the Assault on Labor Endangers Civil Society

Daedalus ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 142 (2) ◽  
pp. 119-138
Author(s):  
Andy Stern
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Civic Engagement ◽  
Public Good ◽  
Labor Movement ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Direct Action ◽  
National Level ◽  
Union Density ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Individual

American trade unions are a crucial segment of civil society that enriches our democracy. Union members are stewards of the public good, empowering the individual through collective action and solidarity. While union density has declined, the U.S. labor movement remains a substantial political and economic force. But the relentless attacks by the political right and its corporate allies could lead to an erosion of civic engagement, further economic inequality, and a political imbalance of power that can undermine society. The extreme assault on unions waged by Republicans in Wisconsin, Ohio, Michigan, and at a national level must be countered by a revitalized labor movement and by those who understand that unions are positive civil actors who bring together individuals who alone have little power. Unions need both structural reform and greater boldness; there are moments in which direct action and dramatic militancy can bring about positive social change. The current assault on labor can be rebuffed, and unions can expand their role as stewards for the public good and as defenders of efforts by the 99 percent to reduce inequality and protect democracy.

scholarly journals Distribution in Islamic Economic Perspective (Critics to Capitalist)

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 156
Author(s):  
Telsy Fratama Dewi Samad
Keyword(s):  
Distribution System ◽  
Adam Smith ◽  
Wealth Distribution ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
The Public ◽  
Distribution Of Wealth ◽  
Economic Perspectives ◽  
Islamic Economic ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Capitalist Ideology

Distribution is one of the economic topics that is necessary to be discussed, mainly the distribution of wealth because it concerns the effort to achieve prosperity for all levels of society in a country through equitable distribution of wealth. In this article, we will discuss the concept of wealth distribution both from conventional perspective, which is based on capitalist ideology and from the perspective of Islamic economics. As the public understanding about capitalism, it is one of the economic comprehension carried by the Father of Economics "Adam Smith" which emphasizes the individual freedom in managing assets without government intervention. Capitalism has led to injustice and income inequality in the community, causing conflict and creating permanent poverty for the citizens of society. Islam refers the process of distribution of wealth following Islamic principles. Islam prevents the accumulation of wealth in certain small groups and promotes the distribution of wealth to all levels of society. This research is descriptive qualitative based on the study of literature such as books and other literature that are relevant to the problems considered by the author. The purpose of this study is to understand the concept of wealth distribution based on Islamic economic and capitalist economic perspectives. The result of this article concluded that the capitalist wealth distribution system should be replaced by the Islamic economic system that emphasizes the value of freedom as well as the behaviour of human based on religious teachings and the value of justice in ownership.

STUMBLING TOWARDS THE CONSTITUTION

2016 ◽  
Vol 75 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-4
Author(s):  
Thomas Adams
Keyword(s):  
Public Good ◽  
Political Community ◽  
Political Control ◽  
The Political ◽  
Social Rights ◽  
Full Membership ◽  
The Public ◽  
Statutory Power ◽  
The Individual

ONE way in which governments may exercise political control over their subjects is by removing their status as citizens. Doing so – denying the individual the political and social rights that are constitutive of full membership of their community – involves making a radical choice, and accordingly such a decision must be properly regulated. One of the ways in which UK law does so is by preventing the exercise of the broad statutory power to rescind the citizenship of a UK national because it is “conducive to the public good”, where doing so would render that person stateless (British Nationality Act 1981, s. 40(2), (4)). Individuals may only be stripped of their citizenship under this provision on the condition that they remain full members of another political community.

Is There an Immigration and School-Level Crime Link?

2021 ◽  
pp. 001112872110524
Author(s):  
Anthony A. Peguero ◽  
Yasmiyn Irizarry ◽  
Janice Iwama ◽  
Sanna King ◽  
Jessica L. Dunning-Lozano ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Behavior ◽  
Immigrant Students ◽  
School Level ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Public ◽  
School Survey ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Racial Ethnic

Contrary to the public misperception that immigrants are likely to be involved in criminal activities, evidence suggests that immigrants are less likely to engage in violence and criminal behavior at the individual level. Little is known, however, about the relationship between immigration, violence, and delinquency at the school-level. The present study draws from the nationally representative 2015 to 2016 School Survey on Crime and Safety to address two research questions. First, is there an association between an increasing proportion of immigrant students and school-level crime? Second, are there racial/ethnic differences in the association between increasing proportion of immigrant students and school-level crime? Our results indicate no relationship between immigration and school-level crime; however, important and distinctive nuances are related to the study findings.

Problems Encountered in Teaching Brazilian Students

1951 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 21-25
Author(s):  
William Allen
Keyword(s):  
Public Good ◽  
Air Force ◽  
Military Service ◽  
Intellectual Development ◽  
Air Transport ◽  
The Public ◽  
Air Transport Industry ◽  
Brazilian Students ◽  
Getulio Vargas ◽  
The Individual

The Escola Tecnica de Aviacao de Sao Paulo was founded in September, 1943, by executive decree of Getulio Vargas, then President of Brazil. The primary function of the school was to train technicians for service in the Brazilian Air Force which was being greatly expanded to meet wartime demands. However, since the school was primarily for reservists, it was expected that after a graduate had performed his military service, he would be available for employment in Brazil's rapidly expanding civilian air transport industry. The establishment of the school fitted in well with the official Brazilian program of educating the individual for the public good. On this subject, President Vargas said in 1943: "In the period which we are facing, intellectual development without a clear and definite object must be considered a luxury accessible to few individuals and of little value to the community."

Anglicanism as Public Philosophy

2008 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 187-211
Author(s):  
Renta Nishihara
Keyword(s):  
Public Good ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Community Setting ◽  
Early Church ◽  
Personal Interest ◽  
Public Philosophy ◽  
Christian Church ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Individual

ABSTRACTThe contrast in social life between a messhi bōkō (sacrificing one's personal interest to the public good) and mekkō hōshi(sacrificing the public for the sake of the individual) cannot be settled in terms of a dualism. The Christian Church from its earliest times was without doubt a ‘public’ community. Setting up a hypothesis that the concept of ‘publicness’ presented by public philosophy is actually closely related to the ‘catholicity’ that has been a characteristic of Christianity since the time of the Early Church, the main object of this essay will be to demonstrate, by introducing concrete theological illustrations, that Anglicanism has the potential to be a ‘public philosophy’.

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