Economics Dictionary of ArgumentsHome
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| Ethics, philosophy: ethics is concerned with the evaluation and justification of actions and ultimately a justification of morality. See also good, values, norms, actions, deontology, deontological logic, consequentialism, morals, motives, reasons, action theory._____________Annotation: The above characterizations of concepts are neither definitions nor exhausting presentations of problems related to them. Instead, they are intended to give a short introduction to the contributions below. – Lexicon of Arguments. | |||
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James M. Buchanan on Ethics - Dictionary of Arguments
Boudreaux I 60 Ethics/Buchanan/Boudreaux/Holcombe: Ethics and economics, as Buchanan understood them, cannot be separated from each other, despite the efforts of some to make economics more “scientific” by removing from it any value judgments. >Economic ethics/Buchanan, >Liberty/Buchanan, >Market/Buchanan, >Utility/Buchanan. The purpose of the social sciences, including economics, is to identify ways to improve people’s well-being by gaining a better understanding of the ways that people do and might interact. Individualism/Buchanan: Buchanan’s individualistic perspective is based on two insights. The first is that individuals know their own interests better than does anyone else, so they should be responsible for making choices to further their goals. The second and more foundational insight is that liberty is a fundamental value in its own right, and so institutions should be designed to promote and preserve individual liberty. Once again, this individualistic perspective implies that the welfare of a group can mean nothing more than the welfare of all of the individuals in the group. To further individual welfare, institutions should be designed to facilitate individual cooperation so that all individuals agree that their actions improve their well-being. Market institutions are ethical because they are based on the voluntary cooperation of individuals who engage in exchange. Buchanan judged political institutions by the same standards. Those who are subject to them should be in agreement that those institutions further their welfare. The ethical problem that arises with governmental institutions is that, ultimately, they are based on force rather than on agreement. The threat always exists that a protective state strong enough to protect individual rights, and a productive state extensive enough to supply public goods, can expand beyond their boundaries and violate the very individual rights that it is meant to protect. If such an abusive institution emerges, it is what Buchanan called “the predatory state.” An ethical government is one that citizens agree furthers their own individual ends. Boudreaux I 61 Much of Buchanan’s work focuses on determining when this is the case, and how governmental institutions can better conform with this norm of voluntary agreement without abusing its powers. Chapters 8 and 9 consider Buchanan’s views on political institutions in more detail. Ultimately, Buchanan says, The justificatory foundation for a liberal social order lies, in my understanding, in the normative premise that individuals are the ultimate sovereigns in matters of social organization, that individuals are the beings who are entitled to choose the organizational-institutional structure under which they live. (Buchanan, 1999(1): 288) 1. Buchanan, James M. (1999). The Logical Foundations of Constitutional Liberty. Liberty Fund._____________Explanation of symbols: Roman numerals indicate the source, arabic numerals indicate the page number. The corresponding books are indicated on the right hand side. ((s)…): Comment by the sender of the contribution. Translations: Dictionary of Arguments The note [Concept/Author], [Author1]Vs[Author2] or [Author]Vs[term] resp. "problem:"/"solution:", "old:"/"new:" and "thesis:" is an addition from the Dictionary of Arguments. If a German edition is specified, the page numbers refer to this edition. |
EconBuchan I James M. Buchanan Politics as Public Choice Carmel, IN 2000 Boudreaux I Donald J. Boudreaux Randall G. Holcombe The Essential James Buchanan Vancouver: The Fraser Institute 2021 Boudreaux II Donald J. Boudreaux The Essential Hayek Vancouver: Fraser Institute 2014 |
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