Genealogy of Self-Interest in Economics

Susumu Egashira, Department of Economics, Otaru University of CommerceMasanori Taishido, Faculty of Economics, Toyo UniversityWade Hands, Department of Economics, University of Puget SoundUskali Mäki, Department of Political and economic Studies, University of Helsinki

• Introductuion.- 1. Adam Smith on self-interest.- 2. Jeremy Bentham on self-interest.- 3. John Stuart Mill on self-interest and the assumption of economic theories.- 4. Leon Walras’ idea of human nature and theory of property: free exchange, communism, and association.- 5. Self-interest in Marshall’s economic thinking.- 6. Otto Neurath’s theory of felicitology and socialization: the meaning of physicalism in social sciences.- 7. On the innate selfishness of evaluation in Mises.- 8. Frank Knight on self-interest.- 9. Karl Polanyi’s motive of economy and institution.- 10. Schrödinger’s concept of economy and institution.- 11. Hayek on interest- the finding of rules on Great Society.- 12. Altruism: how economists have dealt with unselfish actions.- 13. Can agent based modeling realize Adam Smith’s perspective?.- 14. Are social preferences just “enlightened” self-interests after all?-Three non-reductivist responses from behavioral economics in practice.- 15. Homo economic us under multiplepressures: Economics, other disciplines, and social reality.

“My overall opinion of this edited volume is positive. The majority of the papers in this book are very interesting and appealing for most historians of economics. There are also papers that will be of interest to economic methodologists and philosophers of economics. Some of the chapters can certainly initiate further research … . In view of the current debate concerning the role of self-interest by economists and other social scientists, this book is a valuable and necessary addition.” (Stavros A. Drakopoulos, Erasmus Journal for Philosophy and Economics, Vol. 16 (1), 2023)