Normative reasoning in welfare economics and social contract theory usually presumes invariable, context-independent individual preferences. Following recent work particularly in behavioral economics this assumption is difficult to defend. This paper therefore explores what can be said about...

What are the conditions for "moral" conduct in international politics to be viable? This question is explored by modeling regional conflicts as a two-stage game in which imitation of other countries' strategies and public opinion formation processes are assumed to have an impact on a country's...

An evolutionary tool kit is applied in this paper to explain how innate social behavior traits evolved in early human groups. These traits were adapted to the particular production requirements of the group in human phylogeny. They shaped the group members' attitudes towards contributing to the...

The intellectual histories of economics and evolutionary biology are closely intertwined because both subjects deal with living, complex, evolving systems. Because the subject matter is similar, contemporary evolutionary thought has much to offer to economics. In recent decades theoretical...

The label "evolutionary" is currently used in economics to describe a variety of theories and topics. Far from inspiring the paradigmatic shift envisioned by some of the early proponents of evolutionary economics, the patchwork of theories and topics in this field demonstrates the need of an...

To assess whether and when the equation "economic growth = better life" holds, it is necessary to understand what human motivations drive the economic growth process. The preference subjectivism of canonical welfare economics is of little help here as it treats the motivations underlying...

Persistently rising energy prices have revived interest in the economic impact of changing energy costs. We explore the effects of these costs on sectoral change, particularly in relation to the rise and future prospects of the "service economy". Following Baumol?s cost disease hypothesis,...