Fried (in Public Choise, this issue, <CitationRef CitationID="CR1">2013</CitationRef>) claims that Quesada (in Public Choise 130:395–400, <CitationRef CitationID="CR2">2007</CitationRef>) is wrong in showing that the dictator in a dictatorial social welfare function does not necessarily enjoy absolute decision power. This reply revisits, and illustrates by means of an example,...</citationref></citationref>

We address in this paper the question of the existence of a Social Welfare Function that would be sustainable and would allow us to obtain solutions to optimal growth models. We define sustainability by two new axioms called Never-decisiveness of the present and Never-decisiveness of the future....

An important assumption in economic studies of climate policy is the social welfare function. This paper shows that applying distinct decision or social welfare criteria can result in different optimal policies of climate control, notably if climate change impacts are uncertain. First, decision...

Extensive research has shown that few robust results regarding the optimal tax structure are available. Moreover, the stylised models used in optimal tax analyses are not appropriate for practical policy advice. This paper proposes a method of examining optimal marginal income tax reforms using...

This paper analyses the changes in Social Welfare and Inequality during post reform period in the framework of Atkinson Social Welfare Function. Our results suggest acceleration in the growth of social welfare at All India and broad expenditure groups of population. The acceleration of growth in...

In cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) it is usually assumed that a QALY is of equal value to everybody, irrespective of the patient's age. However, it is possible that society assigns different social values to a QALY according to who gets it. In this paper we discuss the possibility of weighting...

There is no consensus yet on the correct way to write the social utility function in the presence of paternalistic altruism. This note shows that the specification of the central planner objective is crucial for optimal capital accumulation and growth. When paternalistic altruism enters the...

The socially optimal allocation has been regarded to be unspecifiable because of utility’s interpersonal incomparability, Arrow’s general possibility theorem, and other factors. This paper examines this problem by focusing not on the social welfare function but instead on the utility...

This paper examines the socially optimal allocation by focusing not on the social welfare function but instead on the utility possibility frontier in exogenous growth models with a heterogeneous population. A unique balanced growth path was found on which all of the optimality conditions of all...