To what extent is the notion of efficiency relevant to Economics? Implications for Ecological Economics

Tommaso Luzzati

No 105, Working Papers from Universita' Politecnica delle Marche (I), Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche e Sociali

Abstract: Efficiency is still a pervasive idea in economic literature. This paper aims to discuss the relevance of this notion. It argues that efficiency is useless in neoclassical economics - where efficiency is a necessary consequence of the postulate of full rationality - and is meaningless in a complex system view - where the means-ends framework does not apply globally. Implications for environmental economics and for ecological economics are drawn. Finally, it is pointed out that, even without efficiency, collective action can still play a major role.

Pages: 19
Date: 1998-03
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:anc:wpaper:105

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