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Methodological Individualism

Author
Basu, Kaushik
Abstract
Methodological individualism - a belief that in explaining social
phenomena we should begin from the individual as a unit of analysis -
was a matter of debate and controversy a long time ago. Contemporary
economists seem to take the view that either the debate is trivial or that
methodological individualism is obviously right. This complacency has
been shaken and interest in this subject has recently been revived by the
publication of some new books and papers. This essay examines the
new debate, argues that mainstream economists, knowingly or
unknowingly, do use concepts •which are irreducibly social and defends
a particular aspect of individualism. The paper ends by drawing
attention to a paradoxical observation concerning normative judgments
and methodological individualism.