Aggregating Infinite Utility Streams with Inter-generational Equity: The Impossibility of Being Paretian

Kaushik Basu and Tapan Mitra

Working Papers from Cornell University, Center for Analytic Economics

Abstract: It has been known that, in aggregating infinite utility streams, there does not exist any social welfare function, which satisfies the axioms of Pareto, inter-generational equity and continuity. We show that the impossibility result persists even without imposing the continuity axiom, and in frameworks allowing for more general domains of utilities than those used in the existing literature.

JEL-codes: D00 D70 D90 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2003-02
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (110)

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Journal Article: Aggregating Infinite Utility Streams with InterGenerational Equity: The Impossibility of Being Paretian (2003)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ecl:corcae:03-03

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