Not a behaviorist: Samuelson’s contributions to utility theory in the Harvard years, 1936–1940

Moscati, Ivan (2019) Not a behaviorist: Samuelson’s contributions to utility theory in the Harvard years, 1936–1940. In: Anderson, Richard, Barnett, William and Cord, Robert A., (eds.) Paul Samuelson: Master of Modern Economics. Palgrave Macmillan, London, UK.

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Abstract

In this chapter I review the contributions to utility theory that Samuelson made when he was a Ph.D. student at Harvard, from the first scientific papers he began writing in 1936 to the Ph.D. dissertation he submitted in November 1940. Based on this review, I make three points: (1) after exploring contrasting research paths during the years 1936–1937, Samuelson’s stance on utility analysis quickly stabilized and, from around mid-1938, he became an advocate of an ordinal-utility approach to choice theory; (2) accordingly, the widespread image of the young Samuelson as a committed behaviorist who wanted to free economic analysis from the utility concept is misleading; (3) the so-called Das Paul Samuelson Problem, that is, the question of whether Samuelson changed his mind on utility analysis between 1938 and 1948–1950, has either a negative answer or is ill-posed.

Item Type:	Book Section
Official URL:	https://www.palgrave.com/
Additional Information:	© 2019 Palgrave Macmillan
Divisions:	CPNSS
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HB Economic Theory H Social Sciences > HC Economic History and Conditions
JEL classification:	B - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology > B2 - History of Economic Thought since 1925 > B21 - Microeconomics B - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology > B3 - History of Thought: Individuals > B31 - Individuals B - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology > B4 - Economic Methodology > B40 - General D - Microeconomics > D1 - Household Behavior and Family Economics > D11 - Consumer Economics: Theory
Date Deposited:	12 Oct 2018 08:58
Last Modified:	11 Dec 2024 17:58
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/90415

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