Economics Quote by Paul Roberts

“In The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith argued that self-interest can solve this problem. Given a free economy and an impartial rule of law,…

— Roger Scruton

It is something of a miracle that individual selfish decisions (in a market economy) must lead to a collectively efficient outcome.

— Steven Landsburg

One of the most powerful insights in economics is this idea of a division of labor. You do the thing you're good at. Other…

— Paul Romer

Adam Smith had one overwhelmingly important triumph: he put into the center of economics the systematic analysis of the behavior of individuals pursuing their…

— George Stigler

“When economists base their models on their fantasies of an "economic man" motivated only by self-interest, they forget community--the all-important web of meaning we…

— Cacilda Jethá

“From this failure to expunge the microeconomic foundations of neoclassical economics from post-Great Depression theory arose the "microfoundations of macroeconomics" debate, which ultimately led…

— Steve Keen

The dynamo of our economic system is self-interest which may range from mere petty greed to admirable types of self-expression.

— Felix Frankfurter

“Smith argued that it was possible for all nations to increase their wealth by adopting policies that promote specialization and the division of labor.”

— Edd S. Noell

“Ultimately, what economics attempts to measure, underneath money, is the totality of all that human beings make and do for each other.”

— Charles Eisenstein

The individualism of current economic theory is manifest in the purely self-interested behaviour it generally assumes. It has no real place for fairness, malevolence,…

— Herman E. Daly

“science of economics should focus on the best use of scarce means to satisfy social ends.”

— Daron Acemoğlu

The key insight of Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations is misleadingly simple: if an exchange between two parties is voluntary, it will not take…

— Milton Friedman