--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Only if we understand why and how certain…" description: "\"“Only if we understand why and how certain kinds of economic controls tend to paralyze the driving forces of a free society, and which kinds of measure..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d43/friedrich-hayek-27992_driving-force_only-if-we-understand-why-and-how-certai_2643134.jpg" --- # Only if we understand why and how certain kinds of… ![“Only if we understand why and how certain kinds of economic controls tend to paralyze the driving forces of a free society, and which kinds of measures are particularly dangerous in this respect, can we hope that social experimentation will not lead us into situations none of us want.” quote by Friedrich Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d43/friedrich-hayek-27992_driving-force_only-if-we-understand-why-and-how-certai_2643134.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d43/friedrich-hayek-27992_driving-force_only-if-we-understand-why-and-how-certai_2643134.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d43/friedrich-hayek-27992_driving-force_only-if-we-understand-why-and-how-certai_2643134.jpg) > ““Only if we understand why and how certain kinds of economic controls tend to paralyze the driving forces of a free society, and which kinds of measures are particularly dangerous in this respect, can we hope that social experimentation will not lead us into situations none of us want.”” [Friedrich Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-hayek/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Understanding harmful economic controls helps avoid undesirable social experiments. **In simple terms:** Know harmful controls to prevent bad outcomes. Key Takeaway Study economic policies critically. Themes economics freedom policy Mood analytical cautious Type philosophical political When to use this quote - policy analysis - public debate - education curricula Key Concepts libertarianism social theory Questions to Reflect On - What controls are most risky today? - How can societies test policies safely? A Different Perspective Complex systems resist simple fixes. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Driving force](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/driving-force/) [Experimentation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/experimentation/) [Free society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/free-society/) ## Related quotes > [“It was in the wake of these erosions of economic controls that intellectual challenges were then made to the role of government in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/it-was-in-the-wake-of-these-erosions-of-economic-controls-that/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [There is no such thing as a failed experiment, only experiments with unexpected outcomes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-buckminster-fuller/there-is-no-such-thing-as-a-failed-experiment-only-experiments-with/) [R. Buckminster Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-buckminster-fuller/) > [“By means of personal experimentation and observation, we can discover certain simple and universal truths. The mind moves the body, and the body follows…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/by-means-of-personal-experimentation-and-observation-we-can-discover/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I think in times of fear and hysteria in a culture, gender experimentation as it pertains to men has to go underground because it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupaul/i-think-in-times-of-fear-and-hysteria-in-a-culture-gender/) [RuPaul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupaul/) > [I tend more towards what some people call literary science fiction, but what I mean by that is that it is full of interesting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-einhorn/i-tend-more-towards-what-some-people-call-literary-science-fiction/) Edward Einhorn > [There would seem to be a limit, even for an art preoccupied with boundaries and transgressions, beyond which a work reaches its breaking point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-ferneyhough/there-would-seem-to-be-a-limit-even-for-an-art-preoccupied-with/) [Brian Ferneyhough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-ferneyhough/) > [You still want to be thoughtful about what you do, no doubt, but you have to learn through trial-and-error experimentation as well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-anthony/you-still-want-to-be-thoughtful-about-what-you-do-no-doubt-but-you/) [Scott D. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-d-anthony/) > [I believe that 20-somethings would be more likely to embrace experimentation - and provide additional value - if they felt safe to do so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathy-engelbert/i-believe-that-20-somethings-would-be-more-likely-to-embrace/) [Cathy Engelbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathy-engelbert/) > [Many, many people have done a lot more sexual experimentation than I have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/many-many-people-have-done-a-lot-more-sexual-experimentation-than-i/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [America was born of revolt, flourished in dissent, became great through experimentation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-steele-commager/america-was-born-of-revolt-flourished-in-dissent-became-great-through/) [Henry Steele Commager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-steele-commager/) > [Cities need old buildings so badly it is probably impossible for vigorous streets and districts to grow without them… for really new ideas of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-jacobs/cities-need-old-buildings-so-badly-it-is-probably-impossible-for/) [Jane Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-jacobs/) > [As a child there was no place for adventure or experimentation. I guess that kind of freedom started in high school with punk rock.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mcnairy/as-a-child-there-was-no-place-for-adventure-or-experimentation-i/) [Mark McNairy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mcnairy/) > [“Play and experimentation loosens our grip on life and allows for more chance luck to surprise us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-hyde-stevens/play-and-experimentation-loosens-our-grip-on-life-and-allows-for-more/) [Elizabeth Hyde Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-hyde-stevens/) > [“There is a time and place for electromagnetic shielding and I regard it as a last resort due to the long term biological problems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/there-is-a-time-and-place-for-electromagnetic-shielding-and-i-regard/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [“The amateur doesn't appreciate the need for experimentation. He wants his experts to know.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-f-skinner-2/the-amateur-doesn-t-appreciate-the-need-for-experimentation-he-wants/) [B.F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner-2/) ## More by Friedrich Hayek > [“What Tocqueville did not consider was how long such a government would remain in the hands of benevolent despots when it would be so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-hayek/what-tocqueville-did-not-consider-was-how-long-such-a-government/) [Friedrich Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-hayek/) > [“essa igualdade formal perante a lei conflita e é de fato incompatível com qualquer atividade do governo que vise a uma igualdade material ou…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-hayek/essa-igualdade-formal-perante-a-lei-conflita-e-de-fato-incompat-vel/) [Friedrich Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-hayek/) > [“Fundamentally, in a system in which the knowledge of the relevant facts is dispersed among many people, prices can act to coordinate the separate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-hayek/fundamentally-in-a-system-in-which-the-knowledge-of-the-relevant/) [Friedrich Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-hayek/) > [“a mais importante transformação que um controle governamental amplo produz é de ordem psicológica, é uma alteração no caráter do povo.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-hayek/a-mais-importante-transforma-o-que-um-controle-governamental-amplo/) [Friedrich Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-hayek/) > [“Although we had been warned by some of the greatest political thinkers of the nineteenth century, by Tocqueville and Lord Acton, that socialism means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-hayek/although-we-had-been-warned-by-some-of-the-greatest-political/) [Friedrich Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-hayek/) > [“It is certainly tragic to see the failure of the most meritorious efforts of parents to bring up their children, of young men to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-hayek/it-is-certainly-tragic-to-see-the-failure-of-the-most-meritorious/) [Friedrich Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-hayek/) > [“To assume all the knowledge to be given to a single mind...is to disregard everything that is important and significant in the real world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-hayek/to-assume-all-the-knowledge-to-be-given-to-a-single-mind-is-to/) [Friedrich Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-hayek/) > [“É muito significativo e característico o fato de socialistas (e nazistas) terem sempre protestado contra a justiça “?meramente” formal, opondose a um Direito que…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-hayek/muito-significativo-e-caracter-stico-o-fato-de-socialistas-e-nazistas/) [Friedrich Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-hayek/) > [“Liberty not only means that the individual has both the opportunity and the burden of choice; it also means that he must bear the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-hayek/liberty-not-only-means-that-the-individual-has-both-the-opportunity-2/) [Friedrich Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-hayek/) > [“To act on behalf of a group seems to free people of many of the moral restraints which control their behaviour as individuals within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-hayek/to-act-on-behalf-of-a-group-seems-to-free-people-of-many-of-the-moral/) [Friedrich Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-hayek/) > [“The fact that German anti-Semitism and anticapitalism spring from the same root is of great importance for the understanding of what has happened there,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-hayek/the-fact-that-german-anti-semitism-and-anticapitalism-spring-from-the/) [Friedrich Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-hayek/) > [“But what socialists seriously contemplate the equal division of existing capital resources among the people of the world?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-hayek/but-what-socialists-seriously-contemplate-the-equal-division-of/) [Friedrich Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-hayek/) > [“In any society freedom of thought will probably be of direct significance only for a small minority.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-hayek/in-any-society-freedom-of-thought-will-probably-be-of-direct-2/) [Friedrich Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-hayek/) [Explore all 14 Friedrich Hayek quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-hayek/) ## More Driving force quotes > [“Do you know what is the driving force in every good play?” He looked at the two women questioningly. When they didn’t respond, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-p-tzsch/do-you-know-what-is-the-driving-force-in-every-good-play-he-looked-at/) [Oliver Pötzsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-p-tzsch/) > [My driving force is spirituality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debra-wilson/my-driving-force-is-spirituality/) [Debra Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debra-wilson/) > [Religion has for too long been placed on the back burner of history, when it may be one of the driving forces in history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-brat/religion-has-for-too-long-been-placed-on-the-back-burner-of-history/) [Dave Brat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-brat/) > [In times of totalitarian or autocratic rule, music (indeed culture in general) is often the only avenue of independent thought. It is the only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-barenboim/in-times-of-totalitarian-or-autocratic-rule-music-indeed-culture-in/) [Daniel Barenboim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-barenboim/) > [“The need for gain, and advantage over others, is one of the chief driving forces behind all human misery.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/the-need-for-gain-and-advantage-over-others-is-one-of-the-chief/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [For the last 15 years that I have been performing, all I ever wanted to do was transcend poetry to the world. See, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lemon-andersen/for-the-last-15-years-that-i-have-been-performing-all-i-ever-wanted/) [Lemon Andersen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lemon-andersen/) > [I haven't always been thrilled with my work. But the fear of not proving the people wrong who think you can't emerge from a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-radcliffe/i-haven-t-always-been-thrilled-with-my-work-but-the-fear-of-not/) [Daniel Radcliffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-radcliffe/) > [“Knowledge as a past fact, as something dead and done with—knowledge by the time it gets into encyclopaedias and text-books—does consist of assertion, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-g-collingwood/knowledge-as-a-past-fact-as-something-dead-and-done-with-knowledge-by/) [R. G. Collingwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-g-collingwood/) > [My driving force in this business is to create and build great men, and to do that, you have to have great relationships.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dabo-swinney/my-driving-force-in-this-business-is-to-create-and-build-great-men/) [Dabo Swinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dabo-swinney/) > [“When my dad died suddenly, my widowed mom couldn’t afford my college tuition, so Morrie and his friend Jake Garber, my dad’s boss, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-l-friedman/when-my-dad-died-suddenly-my-widowed-mom-couldn-t-afford-my-college/) [Thomas L. Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-l-friedman/) > [My grandma, Edith, was one of the greatest inspirations in my life, both personally and professionally. She was an incredibly talented artist who shared…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-meyer/my-grandma-edith-was-one-of-the-greatest-inspirations-in-my-life-both/) [Jennifer Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-meyer/) > [“Mothers are ineffable, their prayers the driving force beneath our wings; their discipline, the magnet for honor—irreplaceable love!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henrietta-newton-martin-author-the-greatest-of-all-romances-your-potters-call/mothers-are-ineffable-their-prayers-the-driving-force-beneath-our/) Henrietta Newton Martin, Author- The Greatest of All Romances, Your Potters Call > [The experience of the irrationality of the world has been the driving force of all religious revolution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-weber/the-experience-of-the-irrationality-of-the-world-has-been-the-driving/) [Max Weber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-weber/) > [“Joy of the self, as explained in the above verse of the Gita, can be explained by understanding driving force whilst we pursue a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shweta-chandra/joy-of-the-self-as-explained-in-the-above-verse-of-the-gita-can-be/) Shweta Chandra > [The ability of a manager to be the driving force of a team is overrated, even when you associate historic teams (think the 1950s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-enten/the-ability-of-a-manager-to-be-the-driving-force-of-a-team-is/) [Harry Enten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-enten/) [Browse all 337 Driving force quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/driving-force/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Only if we understand why and how certain kinds of economic controls tend to paralyze the driving forces of a free society, and which kinds of measures are particularly dangerous in this respect, can we hope that social experimentation will not lead us into situations none of us want.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Friedrich Hayek" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-hayek/only-if-we-understand-why-and-how-certain-kinds-of-economic-controls/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Driving force" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-hayek/only-if-we-understand-why-and-how-certain-kinds-of-economic-controls/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d43/friedrich-hayek-27992_driving-force_only-if-we-understand-why-and-how-certai_2643134.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d43/friedrich-hayek-27992_driving-force_only-if-we-understand-why-and-how-certai_2643134.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d43/friedrich-hayek-27992_driving-force_only-if-we-understand-why-and-how-certai_2643134.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Only if we understand why and how certain kinds of economic controls tend to paralyze the driving forces of…” — Friedrich Hayek", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Friedrich Hayek", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-hayek/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Only if we understand why and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-hayek/only-if-we-understand-why-and-how-certain-kinds-of-economic-controls/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-hayek/only-if-we-understand-why-and-how-certain-kinds-of-economic-controls/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```