Few problems in decision theory have raised more persisting interest than the Allais paradox. It appears that sufficiently many brilliant works have addressed it from within decision theory proper for history and philosophy of science now to enter the stage. In its historical side, the paper...

The paper is a brief account of Georges-Théodule Guilbaud?s (1912-2006) contributions to contemporary aggregative theories. An unnoticed precursor, Guilbaud anticipated on the algebraic conception of aggregation and on the more recent judgment aggregation theory, which generalizes social...

Keynes and Simon traverse all two, fifty year from distance, an epistemologically similar way. Both work out a theory of the rational action presenting very closed characteristics (intuitive, empirical and in a non calculative form). This theory leads them to become aware of the role of the...

For about twenty years, the notion of authority has been put forward again into the analysis of employment relationship, especially concerning contracts incompleteness. This article has two purposes. First, it aims at giving an assessment of the famous controversy between Coase and...

The efficiency claim of the ?Coase theorem?? harshly criticises welfare economics: it asserts that an optimal result will be reached, even in the presence of externalities. However, the precise meaning of this criticism depends on the nature of the exchange. If the ?theorem?? assumes perfect...

This text compares Roy?s theory of the scale of needs (1943) to Dupuit?s theory of dearth (1859). It sets first Roy?s modelling of the scale of needs, his criticism by Marschak (1943) and the analysis of dearth by Dupuit. It shows that the hypotheses raised by Roy are exactly those posed by...

In the development of the general equilibrium theories, Hicks and Allais played an essential role. We are studying here the contributions which were theirs respectively in Value and Capital (1939) and in the Traité d?économie pure (1943). The accent is put on three points: the theory of...

J. Dewey and J.R. Commons have shared a common intellectual and practical engagement for democracy. This paper contends that the proximity of their analysis is larger than the explicit tribute Commons? conception of social sciences pays to Dewey?s social philosophy. On the basis of a...

The paper aims at showing the neglected moral aspect of the market in Smith?s work. The first part provides a new interpretation of the natural price as a just price. In the second part it is claimed that free competition is an institutional framework best suited for fostering the virtues of...

This paper analyzes how economic history and cliometrics can improve our understanding of the financial crises. We discuss the contributions of authors like Reinhart and Rogoff, Bordo and Eichengreen. According to Reinhart and Rogoff the recent crisis is similar in many aspects to former...