Introducing justice and rights to students of economics

Mark D. White

Chapter 15 in Handbook of Teaching Philosophy to Economists, 2025, pp 185-196 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: Most economics instruction is focused on outcomes, whether evaluated in terms of individual or collective welfare or well-being. This is consistent with economics’ roots in classical utilitarianism, and no consideration is usually given to the process by which these results obtain, which is a deontological concern of right and wrong. This can seem odd to economics students, especially in the context of trade-offs in which one party is benefited at the expense of another, or aggregate welfare is maximized while some individuals are harmed, with no consideration in either of rights, desert, or justice. This chapter argues for the importance of discussing justice and rights in the undergraduate economics curriculum; it surveys basic concepts of justice and rights before exploring specific aspects of them and how they are relevant to topics such as equality, externalities, and policymaking.

Keywords: Justice; Rights; John Rawls; Equality; Externalities; Law-and-economics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
ISBN: 9781035336814
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