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Fall 2000

ISSN 0890-913X

Volume 16, Number 1

Categories: Fall 2000 | Religion

Economic Behavior : An Inherent Problem With Utilitarianism

Paul A. Cleveland, Birmingham-Southerm College

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EconomicBehavior:AnInherentProblemWithUtilitarianismPaulA.ClevelandBirmingham-SouthernCollegeSomefundamentalissuesofeconomicbehaviorThetitleofthisarticleindicatesthatthereissomeinherentproblemwithutilitarianthinking.Todevelopthisthesis,itisnecessarytoexplorethenatureofhumanbehaviorandtoexaminethenecessaryimplicationsofutilityanalysiswhenitisextendedtoutilitarianism.Asitisunderstoodhere,economicbehaviorisafundamentalcomponentofhumannature.Inparticular,itisrootedintheobservationthatallhumanbeingshaveanaturalinterestinbehavingeconomically.Thatis,allhumanbeingshaveavestedinterestincapturingthegreatestreturnontheirscarceresources.Towardthisend,anyindividualwillhaveanaturaltendencytoavoidwastinghisresourcesandwill,instead,attempttobefrugal,thrifty,andprudentinmanagingthem.Thisshouldbereadilyaffirmedconsideringtheprospectofwhatwouldhappenifitwerenottrue.AsClarenceCarsonhaswritten,AIfthiswerenotthecase,itiseasytobelieve[thehumanrace]wouldhavelongsinceperishedfromthefaceoftheearth(Carson,1991).@Putbluntly,inaworldcharacterizedbythescarcityofresources,prodigalityandthefoolishdispositionofone’seffortswillsurelyleadtodisaster.TheFrencheconomist,FredericBastiatechoedthecentralityofthisfundamentalcomponentofhumannatureinanessayhewroteentitled,AEffortandResult.@Inthisessayhecomparedtwoviewsofhowwealthiscreatedandconcludedthatrealwealth,Aincreasesproportionatelytotheincreaseintheratiooftheresulttoeffort(Bastiat,1964).@Heargued:Itiswelltonotethattheuniversalpracticeofmankindisalwaysguidedby(this)principle.Noonehaseverseen,andnooneeverwillsee,anypersonwhoworks,whetherhebeafarmer,

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Metadata [hide]

Title	Economic Behavior : An Inherent Problem With Utilitarianism
Authors/Creators:	Paul A. Cleveland, Birmingham-Southerm College
Year:	2000
Volume:	16
Number:	1
Pages:	93 - 107
Publisher:	The Association of Private Enterprise Education
ISSN:	0890-913X
Document Type:	Articles

Citation:
Cleveland, Paul A. / 2000. "Economic Behavior : An Inherent Problem With Utilitarianism." The Journal of Private Enterprise, 16(1): 93-107.