Was Darwin or Spencer the father of laissez-faire social Darwinism?

Richard Weikart

Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 2009, vol. 71, issue 1, 20-28

Abstract: This article explores the way that Darwin and Spencer integrated laissez-faire ideas into their evolutionary biology, and how they then extrapolated from their evolutionary theories to social and economic thought. It argues that Darwin and Spencer developed laissez-faire social Darwinism independently, making both important progenitors of it.

Keywords: Darwin; Spencer; Social; Darwinism; Laissez-faire; Evolution (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2009
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jeborg:v:71:y:2009:i:1:p:20-28

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