Philosophy of Economics

Openly licensed anthology focused on the theme of Philosophy in Economics. Contains An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (Books I-V) by Adam Smith

Adam Smith: His Life, Thought and Legacy

Since the publication of the Glasgow Edition of the Works and Correspondence of Adam Smith by Oxford University Press in the 1970s and 80s, there has been increasing interest in the philosophical aspects of Smith’s writings. While in the public mind, he is associated with economics through his second book An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations, (Wealth of Nations) Adam Smith was a professional philosopher, holding the chair of Moral Philosophy at Glasgow University for eleven years. It was a period he regarded as “the most useful, and, therefore, as by far the happiest” (Smith 1977, 1987: 309) of his life

6. Classical Economics from Smith to Malthus

In 1776, several years after his good friend James Watt had obtained the first patent covering the steam engine and several years before the process for making wrought iron was devised, Adam Smith (1723-1790), a retired professor of moral philosophy at the University of Glasgow, published An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations. This book was immediately popular. It went through five editions in English and was translated into four foreign languages during its author\u27s lifetime, and has stimulated and provoked Western economic thought and debate down to our own time. It won for Smith a secure place as the chief founder of the body of thought which we call classical economics. [excerpt

Reading Adam Smith: Understanding the Misinterpretations & the Fallacy of the Adam Smith Problem

This paper investigates Adam Smith’s intricate vision of human motivation and seeks to expose the fallacy of the “Adam Smith Problem”. Through an expansive study of the famed economist’s two most prominent works, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (WN) and The Theory of Moral Sentiments (TMS), I will show that the two are perfect complements of one other and that Adam Smith did not set down in one place his views on the nature of man. Adam Smith saw man for what he truly is, dominated by selfinterest but not without concern for others, able to reason but not necessarily able to reach the best or right conclusion while all the time seeing one’s own actions through a veil of self-delusion. WN and TMS are equally important books, and in order to understand the economics and philosophy of Adam Smith, both must be read and studied

An Inquiry into the Division of Labor

This inquiry seeks to establish that Adam Smith relies upon his books The Theory of Moral Sentiments [1959] and An Inquiry Into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations [1776] as complementary texts to introduce and develop his ideas. We will begin with a background of economic thinkers prior to Smith. After summarizing an example of this division of labor by Adam Smith, we will delve into the benefits of the division of labor: more skilled workers, time efficiency, and the invention of proper machinery. Similarly, we will examine the implications brought by this division of labor with an analysis of the connection between both of his books. Current scholars will be briefly discussed as they interpret the meaning of Smith\u27s work. Finally, we will look at post-Smithian thinkers in Classical Political Economy

Rapid Economic Growth without Economic Freedom: A Puzzle Made in China

Adam Smith's well-known book, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations, shows that free markets, the protection of private property rights and a minimal government interference in the economy lead to prosperity. The development economics literature has expansive evidence that economic freedom and sound legal, financial and political institutions boost economic growth. China's economy has grown by nearly 10% each year for over three decades. Yet China's phenomenal economic growth has been accompanied by a relatively underdeveloped legal and financial system. For instance, China is the 124th freest economy in the 2008 Index of Economic Freedom. China seems to be an outlier in the economic growth and freedom literature

An Agent-Based Computational Approach to "The Adam Smith Problem"

This paper uses agent-based modeling to investigate the philosophy of Adam Smith. During his lifetime, Smith published two books. In An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (1776), he argued that market behavior was dictated primarily by self-interest. However, his earlier book, The Theory of Moral Sentiments (1759), placed sympathy and benevolence at the center of human social psychology. Reconciling these apparently contradictory views is known as the Adam Smith Problem. This study uses an agent-based model to combine Smith’s theories, exploring how social norms affect economic behavior, and vice versa. Although they share many basic assumptions, Smith’s works leave important questions unanswered: Theory of Moral Sentiments offers a strong model of how social norms consolidate but lacks a coherent explanation for how norms change over time, and, on the other side, Wealth of Nations does not account for the influence of social norms on commercial transactions nor for the durability of seemingly irrational norms in a context of market competition. Considering both theories together in a single model sheds light on their underlying tensions and exposes instabilities that Smith did not anticipate

Role Of Entrepreneur In The Economy

Business is an organization entity engaged in commercial, industrial or professional activities to make profit and nonprofit organization that operate to fulfill a charitable mission. Economics is a social concerned with the production, distribution and consumption of goods and services. It studies how individuals, business, governments and nations make choices on allocating resources to satisfy their wants and needs, trying to determine how these groups should organize and co-ordinate efforts to achieve maximum output. Economics has the solution for all the problems concerned with Gross Domestic Product, Per Capita Income and so on. In 8th Century B.C an economic thinker says to eradicate the scarcity labour, materials and time is needed but Adam Smith’s book in 1776 An Inquiry Into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations explained with the help of changes in modern economy and expectations. Effective utilization of resources & increasing the productivity leads to develop an economy as whole. Changes are key factor of development hence developments require changes in the present business pattern today and tomorrow

KEISTIMEWAAN EKONOMI ISLAM DALAM MEMPERCEPAT PERTUMBUHAN EKONOMI UMAT

Paham Kapitalisme berasal dari Inggris abad 18, kemudian menyebar ke Eropa Barat dan Amerika Utara.  Sebagai akibat dari perlawanan terhadap ajaran gereja, tumbuh aliran pemikiran liberalisme di negara Eropa Barat. Aliran ini kemudian merambah ke segala bidang termasuk bidang ekonomi. Dasar filosofis pemikiran ekonomi Kapitalis bersumber dari tulisan Adam Smith dalam bukunya An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations yang ditulis pada tahun 1776.  Isi buku tersebut sarat dengan pemikiran tingkah laku ekonomi masyarakat, yang kemudian menjadi sistem ekonomi, dan   mengakar menjadi ideologi yang mencerminkan  gaya hidup (way of life).

Economic Freedom and Prosperity

Adam Smith’s well-known book, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations, shows that free markets, the protection of private property rights and a minimal government interference in the economy lead to prosperity. The development economics literature has expansive evidence that economic freedom and sound legal, financial and political institutions boost economic growth. The basic ideas of Adam Smith has let economists to take an interest in economic and political institutions. Recent empirical work has analyzed country-level data on the gross domestic product (GDP). Another line of empirical research focuses on the link between economic freedom and economic growth. This study investigates the association between the economic freedom, economic growth, and prosperity