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Herbert Gintis and the Societal Origins of Preferences: A Personal Memoir

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  • Samuel Bowles

Abstract

In this personal memoir of my lifelong collaborator and friend, Herb Gintis, I reflect on his “A Radical Analysis of Welfare Economics and Individual Development.†Published in the Quarterly Journal of Economics in 1972, the article advances a novel Marx-inspired interpretation of the societal origins of preferences, one that profoundly influenced the ideas of a group of like-minded young economists at Harvard at the time, economics more broadly, and Herb and my subsequent joint work. JEL Classification: B14, B21, D01

Suggested Citation

  • Samuel Bowles, 2024. "Herbert Gintis and the Societal Origins of Preferences: A Personal Memoir," Review of Radical Political Economics, Union for Radical Political Economics, vol. 56(1), pages 146-151, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:reorpe:v:56:y:2024:i:1:p:146-151
    DOI: 10.1177/04866134231222289
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Herbert Gintis, 1975. "Welfare Economics and Individual Development: A Reply to Talcott Parsons," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 89(2), pages 291-302.
    2. Edwards, Richard C & MacEwan, Arthur, 1970. "A Radical Approach to Economics: Basis for a New Curriculum," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 60(2), pages 352-363, May.
    3. Herbert Gintis, 1972. "A Radical Analysis of Welfare Economics and Individual Development," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 86(4), pages 572-599.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    endogenous preferences; Talcott Parsons; Karl Marx;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • B14 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - History of Economic Thought through 1925 - - - Socialist; Marxist
    • B21 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - History of Economic Thought since 1925 - - - Microeconomics
    • D01 - Microeconomics - - General - - - Microeconomic Behavior: Underlying Principles

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