David Calnitsky ; Asher Dupuy-Spencer - The economic consequences of homo economicus: neoclassical economic theory and the fallacy of market optimality

jpe:10646 - Journal of Philosophical Economics, May 27, 2013, Volume VI Issue 2 - https://doi.org/10.46298/jpe.10646
The economic consequences of homo economicus: neoclassical economic theory and the fallacy of market optimality

Authors: David Calnitsky ; Asher Dupuy-Spencer

    This essay presents a critique of the standard ascension from the rational agent to the optimal market in economic theory. Critiques of homo economicus are found unsatisfactory on grounds that its employment allows for the prediction of essential features of actual markets. Using this same criterion we introduce Gary Becker’s essay, ‘Irrational Behavior and Economic Theory,’ which demonstrated that the same features of markets could be derived from non-rational behaviour. Thus, non-rationality is equally predictive but is less restrictive than rationality. Once the assumption of rationality is relaxed, the concept of market optimality (though not market order) must also be sacrificed.


    Volume: Volume VI Issue 2
    Section: Articles
    Published on: May 27, 2013
    Imported on: December 28, 2022
    Keywords: neoclassical economics,rationality,philosophy of social science,[SHS]Humanities and Social Sciences

    Share

    Consultation statistics

    This page has been seen 130 times.
    This article's PDF has been downloaded 120 times.