Rethinking Rational Choice Theory: A Companion on Rational and Moral Action

363 Pages·2012·1.3 MB·English

by  Jan de Jonge (auth.)

Rethinking Rational Choice Theory
What we call ‘Progress’ is the exchange of one nuisance for another nuisance.
Havelock Ellis (1859–1939)
Rethinking Rational Choice
Theory
A Companion on Rational and
Moral Action
Jan de Jonge
© Jan de Jonge 2012
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First published 2012 by
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ISBN 978-1-349-32553-5 ISBN 978-0-230-35554-5 (eBook)
DOI 10.1057/9780230355545
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A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
De Jonge, Jan.
Rethinking rational choice theory : a companion on rational and
moral action / Jan de Jonge.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Rational choice theory. 2. Social choice. 3. Ethics. I. Title.
HM495.D4 2012
302’.13—dc23 2011040381
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12
Contents
Acknowledgements x
Preface xi
Part I Understanding Rational Behaviour 1
Introduction 3
I Rational Choice 7
1 Introduction 7
2 Rational choice theory: an outline 7
3 Utility, preference and welfare 12
4 Rationality and self-interest 15
5 ‘Das Adam Smith’s Problem’ 17
6 Conclusion 19
II Risky Choice 21
1 Introduction 21
2 Choice and risk 22
3 Paradoxical choices 24
4 Expected utility theory and market behaviour 30
5 Expected utility theory: an evaluation 33
6 Conclusion 36
III Behavioural Economics 38
1 Introduction 38
2 Prospect theory and regret theory 38
3 Behavioural economics 42
4 Conclusion 45
IV Neuroeconomics 50
1 Introduction 50
2 Neuroeconomics and brain imaging 51
3 The reception of neuroeconomics in economic science 53
4 The dual system hypothesis 56
5 Brain and mind 61
6 Mind and consciousness 63
7 Conscious and unconscious thought 64
v
vi Contents
8 The triumph of unconscious thought? 66
9 Conclusion 68
V Strategic Choice 71
1 Introduction 71
2 How to play games 72
3 Which games to play? 74
4 Solutions to games 76
5 Classical game theory: some conclusions 81
6 Evolutionary game theory 84
7 Behavioural game theory 85
8 Conclusion 87
VI Social Choice 90
1 Introduction 90
2 From welfare economics to social choice theory 91
3 The Paretian welfare function 92
4 Rights and liberties 97
5 Conclusion 99
VII Intentional Action and Situational Logic 101
1 Introduction 101
2 Internalist and externalist explanations of
human action 103
3 Rational choice explanations and folk psychology 104
4 The failure of Belief-Desire explanations 108
5 The model of situational analysis 110
6 Conclusion: unity of method? 114
VIII Rethinking Rational Choice Theory 117
1 Introduction 117
2 A different approach to choice behaviour 118
3 Institutional individualism 120
4 Neuroeconomics and gene-culture co-evolution 123
5 Ethics and economics 126
Part II How to Choose 129
Introduction 131
IX A Proper Choice 134
1 Introduction 134
2 The value of preferences 135
3 Valuations and the naturalistic fallacy 139
4 Symbolic utility 143
5 Conclusion 146
Contents vii
X Are Justifying Reasons Motivating? 148
1 Introduction 148
2 Internal and external reasons 149
3 The subjective motivational set 153
4 Motivated desires and motivating reasons 155
5 Conclusion 159
XI Framing and Ranking 162
1 Introduction 162
2 Aspect orderings and meta-rankings 163
3 Conflicting values and multiple rankings 165
4 Utilitarian consequentialism and moral
considerations 167
5 Conflicting desires and meta-preferences 170
6 Conclusion 172
XII Commitment 174
1 Introduction 174
2 Inclusive and exclusive accounts of well-being 175
3 Commitment and identity 177
4 Collective intentions 181
5 Conclusion 184
XIII Neuroscience and Moral Reasoning 186
1 Introduction 186
2 Moral dilemmas 186
3 Reflections on the investigations 192
4 Conclusion: moral judgments and moral theory 196
XIV Rational and Moral Action 199
1 Introduction 199
2 Moral authority: is it real? 199
3 Reasons and desires 202
4 Consequential evaluation and responsible
choice 203
5 Conclusion 205
Part III Principles of Justice 207
Introduction 209
XV Justice as Impartiality 212
1 Introduction 212
2 Harsanyi’s social welfare function 213
3 Extended preferences 216
viii Contents
4 The impartial observer theorem 218
5 The problem of inequality 222
6 Harsanyi and his critics 225
7 Conclusion 229
XVI Justice as Fairness 232
1 Introduction 232
2 Kantian constructivism 233
3 The original position 234
4 Justice as fairness 236
5 The problem of stability 239
6 Rawls and his critics 241
7 Rawls and utilitarianism 245
8 Conclusion 251
XVII Justice as Mutual Advantage 253
1 Introduction 253
2 Hobbesian contractualism 256
3 The initial bargaining position 257
4 The market as a morally free zone 259
5 Bargaining and justice 260
6 Constrained maximization 263
7 Gauthier and his critics 265
8 The Archimedean point 267
9 Conclusion 270
XVIII Principles and Policies 272
1 Introduction 272
2 Unique principles, ideal institutions? 272
3 The value of hypothetical constructs 273
4 Conclusion: liberalism and justice 276
XIX Equality, Liberty and Distributive Justice 278
1 Introduction 278
2 Egalitarian policies 278
3 Liberty and responsibility 282
4 Equality or priority 283
5 Commodities and capabilities 285
6 Social welfare 288
7 Conclusion 290
Contents ix
Epilogue 293
Free to Choose 295
1 Introduction 295
2 Hayek on socialism and social justice 297
3 The constitution of liberty 301
4 A free order as a spontaneous order 304
5 Was Hayek a partisan theorist? 308
6 Have free markets evolved spontaneously? 311
7 Negative and positive liberty 314
8 Free to choose 316
9 Positive liberty and liberal democracy 319
10 Conclusion 321
Summary 323
Bibliography 326
Index of Names 348
Index of Subjects 352