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Adam Smith On Public Provision Of Education

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  • Otteson, James R.

Abstract

Most Adam Smith scholars hold that Smith endorsed public provision of education to offset deleterious consequences arising from the division of labor. Smith’s putative endorsement of publicly funded education is taken by some scholars as evidence that Smith tends more toward progressive than classical liberalism, or that this is a departure from, perhaps an inconsistency with, Smith’s otherwise strong presumption against government intervention in markets. This paper argues that these interpretations are flawed because Smith ultimately does not advocate public provision of education. He raises the idea and explores its potential benefits, but he ultimately does not endorse it. Smith also provides reason to be skeptical of public provision of education, which suggests that his final position may have inclined against it.

Suggested Citation

  • Otteson, James R., 2023. "Adam Smith On Public Provision Of Education," SocArXiv xrzmk, Center for Open Science.
    • Handle: RePEc:osf:socarx:xrzmk
    DOI: 10.31219/osf.io/xrzmk
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Andreas Ortmann, 2022. "The Nature and Causes of Corporate Negligence, Sham Lectures, and Ecclesiastical Indolence: Adam Smith on Joint-Stock Companies, Teachers, and Preachers," Palgrave Studies in the History of Economic Thought, in: Adam Smith’s System, chapter 4, pages 93-112, Palgrave Macmillan.
    2. Herzog, Lisa, 2016. "Inventing the Market: Smith, Hegel, and Political Theory," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198784579.
    3. R. D. Freeman, 1969. "Adam Smith, Education and Laissez-Faire," History of Political Economy, Duke University Press, vol. 1(1), pages 173-186, Spring.
    4. Gregory Wolcott, 2018. "The Rehabilitation of Adam Smith for Catholic Social Teaching," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 149(1), pages 57-82, April.
    5. Marc T. Jones, 1993. "Adam Smith and the Ethics of Contemporary Democratic Capitalism in New Zealand," International Journal of Social Economics, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 20(12), pages 3-12, December.
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