Evolution and Rationality: Decisions, Co-operation and Strategic Behaviour

ISBN 10: 1107004993 / ISBN 13: 9781107004993

Published by Cambridge University Press, 2012

About this Item

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Bibliographic Details

• Title: Evolution and Rationality: Decisions, Co-operation and Strategic Behaviour
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Publication Date: 2012
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1107004993
• ISBN 13: 9781107004993
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: Very Good

About this title

Synopsis

This volume explores from multiple perspectives the subtle and interesting relationship between the theory of rational choice and Darwinian evolution. In rational choice theory, agents are assumed to make choices that maximize their utility; in evolution, natural selection 'chooses' between phenotypes according to the criterion of fitness maximization. So there is a parallel between utility in rational choice theory and fitness in Darwinian theory. This conceptual link between fitness and utility is mirrored by the interesting parallels between formal models of evolution and rational choice. The essays in this volume, by leading philosophers, economists, biologists and psychologists, explore the connection between evolution and rational choice in a number of different contexts, including choice under uncertainty, strategic decision making and pro-social behaviour. They will be of interest to students and researchers in philosophy of science, evolutionary biology, economics and psychology.

About the Authors

Samir Okasha is Professor of Philosophy of Science at the University of Bristol. He is the author of Philosophy of Science: A Very Short Introduction (2002) and Evolution and the Levels of Selection (2006).

Ken Binmore is Professor Emeritus of Economics at University College London and a Visiting Emeritus Professor of Economics at the University of Bristol. He is the author of Natural Justice (2005), Game Theory: A Very Short Introduction (2007) and Rational Decisions (2008).