Title: A Reexamination of "Adam Smith Problem": Based on Smith's Perspective on Human Nature
Abstract: In The Theory of Moral Sentiments,Adam Smith presented self-interest as the major human behavioral motivation,while elucidating the pure altruistic motivation.He is actually a dualist on human nature.Smith assumed self-interested homo economicus in An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations.That is necessary simplification and abstraction for the construction of economic theory.However,we should not neglect the altruistic motive of economic agent beneath its self-interest motive assumption.The abstraction is proper and reasonable when taking the research topic and historical context of Adam Smith into account.Thus,we can assert Smith-Problem is in fact a pseudo problem,clarification of which indicates that the construction of economic theory needs reasonable assumptions abstracted from reality and that moral playing an important role in the development of china's marketing economy.
Publication Year: 2012
Publication Date: 2012-01-01
Language: en
Type: article
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