List, Christian 
ORCID: 0000-0003-1627-800X
(2013)
Social choice theory.
In: Zalta, Edward N., (ed.)
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
The Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford, USA.
Abstract
Social choice theory is the study of collective decision processes and procedures. It is not a single theory, but a cluster of models and results concerning the aggregation of individual inputs (e.g., votes, preferences, judgments, welfare) into collective outputs (e.g., collective decisions, preferences, judgments, welfare). Central questions are: How can a group of individuals choose a winning outcome (e.g., policy, electoral candidate) from a given set of options? What are the properties of different voting systems? When is a voting system democratic? How can a collective (e.g., electorate, legislature, collegial court, expert panel, or committee) arrive at coherent collective preferences or judgments on some issues, on the basis of its members' individual preferences or judgments? How can we rank different social alternatives in an order of social welfare? Social choice theorists study these questions not just by looking at examples, but by developing general models and proving theorems. Pioneered in the 18th century by Nicolas de Condorcet and Jean-Charles de Borda and in the 19th century by Charles Dodgson (also known as Lewis Carroll), social choice theory took off in the 20th century with the works of Kenneth Arrow, Amartya Sen, and Duncan Black. Its influence extends across economics, political science, philosophy, mathematics, and recently computer science and biology. Apart from contributing to our understanding of collective decision procedures, social choice theory has applications in the areas of institutional design, welfare economics, and social epistemology.
| Item Type: | Book Section |
|---|---|
| Official URL: | http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/win2013/ |
| Additional Information: | © 2013 The Author |
| Divisions: | Government Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method |
| Subjects: | B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > B Philosophy (General) |
| Date Deposited: | 30 Apr 2015 12:22 |
| Last Modified: | 15 Sep 2023 09:53 |
| Funders: | John Perry Fund |
| URI: | http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/61780 |
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