(WP 2017-04) Behavioral Economics and the Positive-Normative Distinction: Sunstein’s \u3cem\u3eChoosing Not to Choose\u3c/em\u3e and Behavioral Economics Imperialism

This paper examines behavioral economics’ use of the positive-normative distinction in its critique of standard rational choice theory as normative, and argues that it departs from Robbins’ understanding of that distinction in ways that suggest behavioral economists themselves do not observe that distinction. One implication of this is that behavioral economists generally do not recognize Putnam’s fact-value ‘entanglement thesis’ while a second implication is that the charge that rational choice theory is descriptively inadequate paradoxically appears to mean that it does not employ the implicit value basis and normative vision that behavioral economics recommends, thus actually violating Robbins’ distinction. This latter argument is developed through an examination of Sunstein’s Choosing Not to Choose which uses nudge policy in the form of default rules to advance a different conception of freedom than standard choice theory employs. The paper goes on to argue that behavioral economics imperialism, particularly in the form of behavioral development economics imperialism, is more about promoting its implicit value basis and normative vision over that promoted by standard rational choice theory than about advancing an alternative conception of economics for social science. A final section comments on economics’ status and relation to the other social sciences

Behavioral economics and the positive- normative distinction: Sunstein’s Choosing Not to Choose and behavioral economics imperialism

Full Text / Article completThis paper examines behavioral economics’ use of the positive-normative distinction in its critique of standard rational choice theory as normative, and argues that it departs from Robbins’ understanding of that distinction in ways that suggest behavioral economists themselves do not observe that distinction. One implication of this is that behavioral economists generally do not recognize Putnam’s fact-value ‘entanglement thesis’ while a second implication is that the charge that rational choice theory is descriptively inadequate paradoxically appears to mean that it does not employ the implicit value basis and normative vision that behavioral economics recommends, thus actually violating Robbins’ distinction. This latter argument is developed through an examination of Sunstein’s Choosing Not to Choose which uses nudge policy in the form of default rules to advance a different conception of freedom than standard choice theory employs. The paper goes on to argue that behavioral economics imperialism, particularly in the form of behavioral development economics imperialism, is more about promoting its implicit value basis and normative vision over that promoted by standard rational choice theory than about advancing an alternative conception of economics for social science. A final section comments on economics’ status and relation to the other social sciences.Cet article examine l'utilisation par l'économie comportementale de la distinction positive-normative dans sa critique de la théorie du choix rationnel standard comme norme, et soutient qu'elle s'écarte de la compréhension de cette distinction par Robbins de manière à suggérer que les économistes comportementaux eux-mêmes n'observent pas cette distinction. Une conséquence est que les économistes comportementaux ne reconnaissent généralement pas la thèse de l'enchevêtrement fait- valeur de Putnam, alors qu'une deuxième implication est que l'accusation selon laquelle la théorie du choix rationnel est inadéquate à des fins descriptives signifie paradoxalement qu'elle n'utilise pas la conception de la valeur implicite et normative que l'économie comportementale recommande, violant ainsi réellement la distinction de Robbins. Ce dernier argument est développé à travers un examen de Choosing Not to Choose de Sunstein qui utilise la politique de nudge sous la forme de règles par défaut pour faire avancer une conception différente de la liberté que celle de la théorie du choix standard. Le papier poursuit en affirmant que l'impérialisme économique comportementaliste, en particulier sous la forme d'un impérialisme économique de développement comportemental, cherche plutôt à promouvoir sa conception implicite de la base de la valeur et sa vision normative par rapport à celle préconisée par la théorie standard du choix rationnel. Une dernière section commente le statut de l'économie et sa relation avec les autres sciences sociales

Living together in the post-conflict city: radio and the re-Making of place in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire

This thesis examines the role of proximity radio (radio de proximité) in the re-making of place in post-conflict Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire. Proximity radio stations are areabased, non-commercial broadcasters introduced in the late 1990s as part of the liberalisation of the Ivoirian airwaves. Following recent politico-military conflict, stations have become key actors in national and local efforts to rebuild ways of living together. To understand the role that proximity radio stations play in post-conflict cohabitation, it is necessary to move beyond policy discourses of "reconciliation" and "social cohesion." These discourses are ubiquitous in Abidjan but they provide an abstracted and de-politicising account of togetherness. Instead, putting critical media and urban studies in dialogue, I ground my approach in the layered complexities of everyday mediation, as well as the contested politics of city life. Theoretically, the work of proximity radio stations can be understood in terms of what I call the mediated production of locality. This situates radio's significance in its ability to sustain habits of shared space from which encounters can spring and new commonalities can emerge. It also conceives of urban place as thoroughly political terrain, challenging top-down discourses that posit the local as a realm of social activity separate from (national) politics. The centrality of place, as a concept for inquiry, informs an ethnographic methodology attuned both to the multiple sites of media-related practices and to discourses linking (or de-linking) locality, media and politics in Abidjan. Asking what kind of place proximity radio stations make in the Ivoirian metropolis allows us to grasp local mediation in its full ambivalence - that is, considering both its challenges and its potential for new commonalities. My empirical analysis shows that, on the one hand, proximity radio stations carry discourses in which the local serves to contain and constrain urban dwellers' ability to question their situation. On the other hand, stations foster a sociability of encounter in which it is possible to discern the promise of a new form of local politics, rooted in the shared experiences of everyday urban life. In the end, I argue that proximity radio should allow inhabitants to make their own place in the city, rather than tell them what kind of meaning the local should take in their lives

Forming responsible citizens in the euro-mediterranean region empowering youth as agents for sustainable human development

Accessing and obtaining a value-based quality education is the foundation for youth to become agents for sustainable development. Building on Amartya Sen’s capabilities approach as a basis for human-centred education policies, the MA thesis endeavours in an investigation on the role of citizenship education with respect to sustainable human development. The analysis and assessment of ideaborn’s “Forming Responsible Citizens” (FRC) experience in Tunisia highlight that citizenship education can be valuable as an instrument in itself as well as a methodology and behaviour applied to education in general, provided that it is anchored in a democratic educational ecosystem that is conducive of sustainable human development