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Gigerenzer’s evolutionary arguments against rational choice theory: an assessment

Schulz, Armin (2011) Gigerenzer’s evolutionary arguments against rational choice theory: an assessment. Philosophy of Science, 78 (5). pp. 1272-1282. ISSN 0031-8248

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Identification Number: 10.1086/662264

Abstract

I critically discuss a recent innovation in the debate surrounding the plausibility of rational choice theory (RCT): the appeal to evolutionary theory. Specifically, I assess Gigerenzer and colleagues’ claim that considerations based on natural selection show that, instead of making decisions in a RCT-like way, we rely on ‘simple heuristics’. As I try to make clearer here, though, Gigerenzer and colleagues’ arguments are unconvincing: we lack the needed information about our past to determine whether the premises on which they are built are true—and, hence, we cannot tell whether they, in fact, speak against RCT.

Item Type: Article
Official URL: http://journal.philsci.org/
Additional Information: © 2011 Philosophy of Science Association
Divisions: Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method
Subjects: B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > B Philosophy (General)
Date Deposited: 28 Jan 2011 11:04
Last Modified: 05 Jan 2024 20:03
URI: http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/31834

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