Course 108
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Course 108 : Social Choice
Announcements
Problem Set, Also see Fair Division and Collective Welfare by Hervé Moulin
Syllabus and Readings
Political Philosophy reading: Michael J. Sandel, Justice: What’s the right thing to do?
[More readings will be added as we proceed]Welfarist approach to social decision
- Topic 1: Arrow’s approach to social choice
- Reading : (Arrow) Introduction to “Social Choice and Individual Values”,
- Reading: Mas-colell, Whinston, Green, Chapter 21 (21.E is optional)
- (Debate) Majority rule and beef festival: Two arguments – Private food habit, Political marginalization and assertion
- Topic 2: Utilitarianism and beyond
- Reading: (Harsanyi) Defense of utilitarianism, Section 1-5, (Harsanyi) Proof of axiomatic characterization of utilitarianism, Page 313-314
- Reading: (Machina) Are we expected utility maximizer?
- (Debate) Utilitarianism and the paradox of slavery
- Reading : (Blackorby and others) Unified theory of Welfarism
- Topic 3: Axiomatic Bargaining
- Reading: (Thomson and Lensberg) Axiomatic bargaining with a fixed number of agents
- Topic 4: A critical review of Welfarist approach
- Reading : (Sen) What’s Wrong With Welfare Economics, The impossibility of Paretian liberal
- Reading : (Sen) Equality of what?
Non-Welfarist approach to social decision
- Topic 1: Libertarianism and (in)equality
- Reading: (Hayek) Basics of libertarianism, (Friedman) Libertarianism and role of state (chapter 1, chapter 2),
- Reading: (Bhagwati) Market and normative Economics
- Topic 2: Redistribution of endowment -Welfarist approach
- Reading: (Varian) No Envy, (Panzer and Schmeidler) Egalitarian Equivalence
- Topic 3: Redistribution of resources- Non Welfarist approach
- Reading: (Roemer) Equality of opportunity
- Reading: Rawls- Justice as fairness, Sen- Functioning and capability