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An economic analysis of the philosophical common good

Tim Murphy (Othman Yeop Abdullah Graduate School of Business, Universiti Utara Malaysia, Sintok, Malaysia)
Jeff Parkey (School of Government, Universiti Utara Malaysia, Sintok, Malaysia)

International Journal of Social Economics

ISSN: 0306-8293

Article publication date: 8 August 2016

593

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyze economically several versions of the philosophical common good in order to contribute to the search for a viable conceptualization of the common good.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper presents an economic analysis of the common good by examining the extent to which eight different versions of the philosophical concept possess the consumption characteristics of excludability and rivalry – and thus how each version may be classified as an economic good: private, public, common, or club.

Findings

One of the examined versions of the philosophical common good is an economic common good; three versions are club goods; and four versions are public goods. Only those versions of the common good that are classifiable as public goods merit consideration as adequate conceptualizations in political and philosophical thought. In assessing the admissible versions the authors conclude that a viable conceptualization of the common good may simply be the maintenance of a peaceful social order that allows people to pursue their individual and collective goals in community.

Originality/value

The paper shows that an analysis of the philosophical common good using the economic criteria of excludability and rivalry can contribute to common good discourse.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank Ela Kotkowska, Suzanne Mulligan, Vincent O’Connell, David Prendergast, Holley H. Ulbrich, K. Kuperan Viswanathan, and two anonymous referees for their comments on drafts of this paper.

Citation

Murphy, T. and Parkey, J. (2016), "An economic analysis of the philosophical common good", International Journal of Social Economics, Vol. 43 No. 8, pp. 823-840. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSE-08-2014-0168

Publisher

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Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2016, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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