Are there really any errors in the Austrian theory of welfare?

Article Sidebar

PDF
Published: Dec 30, 2024
DOI: https://doi.org/10.59203/zfn.76.687
Keywords:
Austrian School of Economics libertarianism welfare economics

Main Article Content

Mateusz Czyżniewski
Gdansk University of Technology

Abstract

This text reviews David Megger’s 2021 book entitled Justice in Welfare Economics. Libertarianism and the Austrian School (in Polish: Sprawiedliwość w ekonomii dobrobytu, liberatarianizm i szkoła austriacka). The review takes a critical approach, highlighting the most significant aspects of the presented considerations and emphasising their uniqueness and complexity. I intend to extensively discuss the author’s theses concerning the modification of the fundamental claims of Austrian school representatives about justice and welfare, highlighting both their strengths and weaknesses.

Article Details

How to Cite
Czyżniewski, M. (2024). Are there really any errors in the Austrian theory of welfare?. Philosophical Problems in Science (Zagadnienia Filozoficzne W Nauce), (76), 505–527. https://doi.org/10.59203/zfn.76.687
Issue
No. 76 (2024): The philosophical foundations of economics
Section
Review essays
Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

References

Blaug, M., 1998. Positive-Normative Distrinction. In: J.B. Davis, D.W. Hands and U. Mäki, eds. The Handbook of Economic Methodology. Edward Elgar Publishing, pp.370–374. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781781954249.00095.

Bylund, P.L., 2015. Explaining Firm Emergence: Specialization, Transaction Costs, and the Integration Process. Managerial and Decision Economics, 36(4), pp.221–238. https://doi.org/10.1002/mde.2661.

Gordon, D., 1993. Toward a deconstruction of utility and welfare economics. The Review of Austrian Economics, 6(2), pp.99–112. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00842706.

Gunning, J.P., 2005. Did Mises Err? Was He a Utilitarian?: Reply to Block. The American Journal of Economics and Sociology, 64(3), pp.939–960. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1536-7150.2005.00399.x.

Hausman, D.M., 1995. The Impossibility of Interpersonal Utility Comparisons. Mind, 104(415), pp.473–490. Available at: <https://www.jstor.org/stable/2254638> [visited on 16 October 2024].

Herbener, J.M., 1997. The Pareto rule and welfare economics. The Review of Austrian Economics, 10(1), pp.79–106. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02538144.

Hoppe, H.-H., 2006. The Economics and Ethics of Private Property. 2nd ed. Auburn AL: Ludwig von Mises Institute.

Juszczak, J., 2021. O ekonomii dobrobytu Rothbarda. Recenzja pracy Dawida Meggera Sprawiedliwość w ekonomii dobrobytu. Wrocław: Wydział Prawa, Administracji i Ekonomii Uniwersytetu Wrocławskiego. https://doi.org/10.34616/144533.

Kvasnička, M., 2008. Rothbard’s Welfare Theory: A Critique. New Perspectives on Political Economy, 4(1), pp.41–52.

Lachmann, L., 1971. The Legacy of Max Weber. Berkeley: The Glendessary Press.

Machlup, F., 1978. Methodology of Economics and Other Social Sciences, Economic theory and mathematical economics. New York: Academic Press.

Megger, D., 2021. Sprawiedliwość w ekonomii dobrobytu: libertarianizm i szkoła austriacka. Toruń: Wydawnictwo Naukowe Uniwersytetu Mikołaja Kopernika. https://doi.org/10.12775/978-83-231-4689-6.

Megger, D., 2023. Austriacka szkoła ekonomii jako przyczynowo-realistyczny program badawczy. Studia metodologiczne. PhD thesis. Toruń: Uniwersytet Mikołaja Kopernika. Available at: <http://repozytorium.umk.pl/handle/item/6850> [visited on 16 October 2024].

Mises, L.v., 1962. The Ultimate of Foundation of Economic Science: An Essay on Method, William Vilker Fund Series in the Humane Studies. Princeton, NJ: Van Nostrand Comp.

Mises, L.v., 1997. Theory and History: An Interpretation of Social and Economic Evolution. Auburn AL: Ludwig von Mises Institute.

Mises, L.v., 1998. Human Action: A Treatise on Economics. Scholar’s ed. Auburn AL: Ludwig von Mises Institute.

Nozick, R., 1999. Anarchy, State, and Utopia. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing.

O’Driscoll, G.P. and Rizzo, M.J., 2014. Austrian Economics Re-examined: The Economics of Time and Ignorance. London: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315776736.

Prychitko, D.L., 1993. Formalism in Austrian-school welfare economics: Another pretense of knowledge? Critical Review, 7(4), pp.567–592. https://doi.org/10.1080/08913819308443319.

Robbins, L.R., 1932. An Essay on the Nature and Significance of Economic Science. London: Macmillan.

Rothbard, M., 1998. The Ethics of Liberty. New York: New York University Press.

Rothbard, M., 2008. Toward a Reconstruction of Utility and Welfare Economics. In: M. Sennholz, ed. On Freedom and Free Enterprise. Auburn AL: Ludwig von Mises Institute, pp.224–262.

Rothbard, M., 2009. Man, Economy, and State: A Treatise on Economic Principles; with Power and Market: Government and the Economy. 2nd ed. Auburn AL: Ludwig von Mises Institute.

Samuelson, P.A., 1971. Foundations of Economic Analysis, Harvard economic studies. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.

Wiśniewski, J.B., 2019. Austrian welfare economics: A reply to Wysocki and Megger. Ekonomia, 25(3), pp.25–28. https://doi.org/10.19195/2084-4093.25.3.2.

Wysocki, I. and Dominiak, Ł., 2023. How Does Justice Relate to Economic Welfare? A Case Against Austro-Libertarian Welfare Economics. Croatian Journal of Philosophy, 23(67), pp.51–67. https://doi.org/10.52685/cjp.23.67.3.

Wysocki, I. and Megger, D., 2019. Austrian welfare economics: A critical approach. Ekonomia, 25(1), pp.73–80. https://doi.org/10.19195/2084-4093.25.1.5.

Wysocki, I. and Megger, D., 2020. Rejoinder to Wiśniewski on the Austrian welfare economics. Ekonomia, 26(2), pp.103–109. https://doi.org/10.19195/2658-1310.26.2.6.