IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/hop/hopeec/v48y2016i1p35-64.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Use (and Abuse) of Robinson Crusoe in Neoclassical Economics

Author

Listed:
  • Fritz Söllner

Abstract

Robinson Crusoe stories were and are extensively used in neoclassical economics. The behavior of neoclassical Robinson Crusoe, however, is at odds both with that of Defoe's hero, the original Robinson Crusoe, and that of real-world castaways. Only the early neoclassicals can be criticized for these contradictions because they intended to explain the behavior of their isolated individuals, whereas modern neoclassicals only seek to describe the decisions of Robinson Crusoe in terms of modern choice theory. This contrast mirrors the change in the way utility theory is conceived—no longer as a means to explain behavior but only as a means to describe it. It is argued that Robinson Crusoe and homo economicus are closely related and that, therefore, the Robinson Crusoe stories afford insights into the development of neoclassical economics and the problems resulting from its reliance upon the isolated-individual paradigm.

Suggested Citation

  • Fritz Söllner, 2016. "The Use (and Abuse) of Robinson Crusoe in Neoclassical Economics," History of Political Economy, Duke University Press, vol. 48(1), pages 35-64, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:hop:hopeec:v:48:y:2016:i:1:p:35-64
    DOI: 10.1215/00182702-3452291
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1215/00182702-3452291
    File Function: link to full text
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1215/00182702-3452291?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:hop:hopeec:v:48:y:2016:i:1:p:35-64. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Center for the History of Political Economy Webmaster (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.dukeupress.edu/Catalog/ViewProduct.php?viewby=journal&productid=45614 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.