Reduction, Rationality and Game Theory in Marxian Economics

ISBN-13: 9780415287654 / Angielski / Twarda / 2004 / 160 str.

Bruce Philp

Opis

Beneath the exterior, what is the nature of capitalism? In this volume, it is argued that capitalism remains exploitative and may be crisis-prone. Moreover, Marxian economics is still an approach that can yield significant insight into how class antagonisms operate and endure in capitalist economies. This book develops Marx's analysis of class conflict and the competitive process in light of the emergence, since the late 1970s, of analytical Marxism. However, the approach of analytical Marxism is also deserving of criticism because of the problematic methodological approaches to social science endorsed by leading practitioners. Contra analytical Marxism, this book argues that it is essential to relocate such game theory in a methodological structure that gives primacy to class, rather than individual agents, in generating social scientific explanations. In the first part of the book, methodological individualism is subjected to criticism, and it is suggested that alternative levels of social scientific investigation can be considered to provide insight into the nature of capitalism. Game theory may be used to explore how capitalist economies function, but the individual human actor

Spis treści

1. Introduction
2. Methodology of Reduction
3. Marxism and the Foundations of Collective Action
4. Value, Price and Exploitation
5. Marxian Theories of Exploitation and Class
6. Class Conflict and Working Hours
7. Reduction, Rationality and the Rate of Profit
8. Conclusion

O autorze

Bruce Philp is a lecturer in Economics at Nottingham Trent University. He is author of several articles on Marxism and game theory.