Individual Choice of a Political-Economic Process

Abstract

By what means does one determine a rule to use in determining a rule for the making of social decisions? This rather perplexing problem appropriately has the flavor of an infinite regress. Yet, several scholars have attempted to phrase the question in a manner which circumvents the problem. The essay here is a discussion of the broad settings in which the problem has been posed. An examination of the question calls for the context of the question. Three separate contexts suggest themselves. The first context arises with the "justification" of "social actions" or "decisions." The second arises when one seeks advice on what type of rule he "should" support. The third involves a theory about the type of rules that are "likely" to be "agreed" upon by a group of people.