14 - Conclusion

Summary

The chapter reflects on reasons economists have departed from welfarism when considering practical problems. Economists generally accept that using ethical values other than individual utility requires departing from neutrality but, if confronted with political contexts involving issues such as distribution, the environment or discrimination, they find it hard not to take an ethical position. Merit or public goods cannot be reduced to the satisfaction of individual utilities insofar as they are meaningful only in a social context. The individualism imposed by welfarism is also debatable when facing the interdependencies that exist between real-world individuals. Lastly, while welfare economics aims to avoid paternalism, reliance on preferences alone can be problematic. The paternalism implied by going beyond welfarism raises issues regarding democratic values such as agency and public reasoning that suggests that, instead of merely substituting non-welfarism for welfarism, there is a need for public debate on moral values. We conclude that economics, when inspired by theory and involved in practices with political consequences, should become more of a moral science.