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Das Adam Smith Problem: Its Origins, the Stages of the Current Debate, and One Implication for Our Understanding of Sympathy

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  • Montes, Leonidas

Abstract

Scholars have long been interested in the apparent dichotomy between sympathy and self-interest in Smith. The question of the consistency between The Theory of Moral Sentiments (TMS) and An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (WN)—the famous Das Adam Smith Problem—is definitely still relevant for anyone attracted to Smith scholarship. Although there is some agreement that the two works are consistent and, furthermore, parts of an incomplete system, it seems that the Problem continues to attract interest, not only for its historical and philosophical appeal, but also perhaps for its implications for the current economics-and-ethics debate.

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  • Montes, Leonidas, 2003. "Das Adam Smith Problem: Its Origins, the Stages of the Current Debate, and One Implication for Our Understanding of Sympathy," Journal of the History of Economic Thought, Cambridge University Press, vol. 25(1), pages 63-90, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:jhisec:v:25:y:2003:i:01:p:63-90_00
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    Cited by:

    1. Benoît Walraevens, 2022. "Adam Smith’s Economics and the Lectures on Rhetoric and Belles Lettres: The Language of Commerce," Palgrave Studies in the History of Economic Thought, in: Adam Smith’s System, chapter 6, pages 141-166, Palgrave Macmillan.
    2. Geoffrey Poitras & Franck Jovanovic, 2010. "Pioneers of Financial Economics: Das Adam Smith Irrelevanzproblem?," History of Economics Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 51(1), pages 43-64, January.
    3. Jérôme Ballet & Emmanuel Petit & Delphine Pouchain, 2018. "What mainstream economics should learn from the ethics of care," Post-Print hal-02145302, HAL.
    4. Aneta Kargol-Wasiluk & Anna Wildowicz-Giegiel & Marian Zalesko, 2018. "The Evolution of the Economic Man. From Homo Oeconomicus to Homo Moralis," Gospodarka Narodowa. The Polish Journal of Economics, Warsaw School of Economics, issue 1, pages 33-57.
    5. Avner Offer, 2012. "Self-interest, Sympathy and the Invisible Hand : From Adam Smith to Market Liberalism," Economic Thought, World Economics Association, vol. 1(2), pages 1-1, December.
    6. Amos Witztum, 2005. "Social Circumstances and Rationality:," American Journal of Economics and Sociology, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 64(4), pages 1025-1047, October.
    7. Emily Northrop, 2013. "The Accuracy, Market Ethic, and Individual Morality Surrounding the Profit Maximization Assumption," The American Economist, Sage Publications, vol. 58(2), pages 111-123, November.
    8. Laurie Bréban, 2017. "An Investigation into the Smithian System of Sympathy: from Cognition to Emotion," Working Papers hal-01467340, HAL.
    9. Avner Offer, 2012. "Self-interest, Sympathy and the Invisible Hand : From Adam Smith to Market Liberalism," Economic Thought, World Economics Association, vol. 1(2), pages 1-1, December.
    10. Ballandonne, Matthieu & Cersosimo, Igor, 2022. "Towards a “Text as Data” Approach in the History of Economics: An Application to Adam Smith’s Classics," OSF Preprints mg3zb, Center for Open Science.
    11. Carlos Rodríguez Braun, 2021. "Adam Smith’s liberalism," The Review of Austrian Economics, Springer;Society for the Development of Austrian Economics, vol. 34(4), pages 465-478, December.
    12. Scott Drylie, 2020. "Professional Scholarship from 1893 to 2020 on Adam Smith’s Views on School Funding: A Heterodox Examination," Econ Journal Watch, Econ Journal Watch, vol. 17(2), pages 350–391-3, September.
    13. Avner Offer, 2013. "Regard," Chapters, in: Luigino Bruni & Stefano Zamagni (ed.), Handbook on the Economics of Reciprocity and Social Enterprise, chapter 29, pages 285-294, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    14. Phiilippe Gillig, 2016. "Why German historicists were wrong to put John Stuart through the Mill," Working Papers of BETA 2016-43, Bureau d'Economie Théorique et Appliquée, UDS, Strasbourg.
    15. Laurie Bréban, 2018. "An Investigation into the Smithian System of Sympathy: from Cognition to Emotion," Post-Print hal-03904227, HAL.
    16. Gold, Natalie, 2020. "How should we reconcile self-regarding and pro-social motivations? A renaissance of “Das Adam Smith Problem”," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 109218, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    17. Horn, Karen, 2019. "The difficult relationship between historical ordoliberalism and Adam Smith," Freiburg Discussion Papers on Constitutional Economics 19/3, Walter Eucken Institut e.V..
    18. Laurie Bréban & Jean Dellemotte, 2016. "From one form of sympathy to another: Sophie de Grouchy’s translation of and commentary on Adam Smith’s Theory of Moral Sentiments," Working Papers hal-01435828, HAL.
    19. Wagner-Tsukamoto Sigmund, 2013. "The Adam Smith Problem Revisited: A Methodological Resolution," Journal des Economistes et des Etudes Humaines, De Gruyter, vol. 19(1), pages 63-99, September.
    20. Craig, Justin B. & Newbert, Scott L., 2020. "Reconsidering socioemotional wealth: A Smithian-inspired socio-economic theory of decision-making in the family firm," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 11(4).

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