Darwinism in economics and the evolutionary theory of policy-making

Arbeitspapier

According to the advocates of a Generalized Darwinism (GD), the three core Darwinian principles of variation, selection and retention (or inheritance) can be used as a general framework for the development of theories explaining evolutionary processes in the socio­economic domain. Even though these are originally biological terms, GD argues that they can be re-defined in such a way as to abstract from biological particulars. We argue that this approach does not only risk to misguide positive theory development, but that it may also impede the construction of a coherent evolutionary approach to policy implications. This is shown with respect to the positive, instrumental and normative theories such an approach is supposed to be based upon.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: Papers on Economics and Evolution ; No. 0910

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Current Heterodox Approaches: Historical; Institutional; Evolutionary
• Subject: Evolution ; Selection ; Darwinism ; Ontology ; Continuity Hypothesis ; Evolutionary Theory of Policy-Making

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Schubert, Christian
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Max Planck Institute of Economics
• (where): Jena
• (when): 2009

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/32647
• Last update: 04.03.2025, 6:45 AM CET