Measuring freedom: towards a solution to John Rawls’ indexing problem

Thomas Ferretti

LSE Research Online Documents on Economics from London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library

Abstract: Suppose a principle of distributive justice states that social institutions should maximize the freedom of the least well-off. Understanding how to do so would be easier if freedom only depended on one good, like income. If it depends instead on a composite index of social primary goods, a question arises: Which combination of social primary goods can maximize the freedom of the least well-off? This is John Rawls’ indexing problem. Solving it requires addressing two related problems. The first consists in evaluating, in theory, under which conditions it is acceptable to substitute goods, that is, their substitution rates. The second consists in evaluating which acceptable substitutions are feasible in practice. This article proposes a framework to think clearly about this indexing problem within a Rawlsian, resourcist conception of distributive justice. I conclude by discussing a path towards solving the indexing problem. While further empirical exploration is needed, plausible assumptions about social regimes suggest that maximizing the freedom of the least well-off is likely to require giving them access to a social position with a balanced combination of social primary goods.

Keywords: freedom; indexing problem; John Rawls; social primary goods; substitution (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A13 D30 D63 I32 J81 P51 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 31 pages
Date: 2022-08-05
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hpe
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Published in Erasmus Journal for Philosophy and Economics, 5, August, 2022, 15(1). ISSN: 1876-9098

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