Journal of Political Economy Vol. 96 No. 5 1988
Mr. Smith and the Preachers: The Economics of Religion in the Wealth of Nations
Abstract
The extension of economic analysis to problems beyond the domain of formal markets and explicit prices represents a major recent intellectual development. But "economic imperialism" is not new and was not invented in Chicago. Adam Smith, in his Wealth of Nations, extended economic reasoning to a variety of nonmarket exchange problems. One example is his analysis of religious behavior. Smith viewed participation in religion as a rational device by which individual enhanced the value of their human capital. He also explained the behavior of the clergy and other suppliers of religious services from an economic perspective.
- DOI
- 10.1086/261576
- Volume
- 96
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 1066-1088
- Language
- en
- Sources
- openalex crossref