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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Situating Care In Mainstream Health Economics: An Ethical Dilemma?, John B. Davis, Robert Mcmaster
Situating Care In Mainstream Health Economics: An Ethical Dilemma?, John B. Davis, Robert Mcmaster
Economics Faculty Research and Publications
Standard health economics concentrates on the provision of care by medical professionals. Yet ‘care’ receives scant analysis; it is portrayed as a spillover effect or externality in the form of interdependent utility functions. In this context care can only be conceived as either acts of altruism or as social capital. Both conceptions are subject to considerable problems stemming from mainstream health economics’ reliance on a reductionist social model built around instrumental rationality and consequentialism. Subsequently, this implies a disregard for moral rules and duties and the compassionate aspects of behaviour. Care as an externality is a second-order concern relative to …
Theorizing The Social Provisioning Process Under Capitalism: Developing A Veblenian Theory Of Care For The Twenty-First Century, Andrew Cumbers, John B. Davis, Robert Mcmaster
Theorizing The Social Provisioning Process Under Capitalism: Developing A Veblenian Theory Of Care For The Twenty-First Century, Andrew Cumbers, John B. Davis, Robert Mcmaster
Economics Faculty Research and Publications
Thorstein Veblen highlighted a number of human instincts, one of which was the “parental bent.” In contrast to the other “positive” instincts, the parental bent is specifically other-regarding in that Veblen described it in terms of utilizing knowledge for the betterment of society. Veblen’s “parental bent” stresses the social embeddedness of humanity and the human instinct to care. Our ability to care is partially predicated on our social roles and the values embedded within those roles. Critically, this is influenced by the configuration of institutions within a society. Care is grossly under-valued. By drawing upon recent contributions to care in …
The Individual In Mainstream Health Economics: A Case Of Persona Non-Grata?, John B. Davis, Robert Mcmaster
The Individual In Mainstream Health Economics: A Case Of Persona Non-Grata?, John B. Davis, Robert Mcmaster
Economics Faculty Research and Publications
This paper is motivated by Davis’ [14] theory of the individual in economics. Davis’ analysis is applied to health economics, where the individual is conceived as a utility maximiser, although capable of regarding others’ welfare through interdependent utility functions. Nonetheless, this provides a restrictive and flawed account, engendering a narrow and abstract conception of care grounded in Paretian value and Cartesian analytical frames. Instead, a richer account of the socially embedded individual is advocated, which employs collective intentionality analysis. This provides a sound foundation for research into an approach to health policy that promotes health as a basic human right.