Rationality and Freedom

Sen, a economist and philosopher, takes on two of the thorniest ideas in his field in this first of two volumes on rationality, freedom and justice. Here the focus falls on what it means to be rational and what it means to be free, questions that scholars in philosophy and the social sciences have long argued over.

Sen questions the conventional tests used to judge whether a choice is rational. In his view, rationality means putting not only one's decisions but also one's underlying values under the scrutiny of reason. He applies this broader view to personal decisions, including those made under uncertainty, and to collective decisions such as cost-benefit analysis and environmental assessment.

Sen argues that rationality and freedom depend on each other. A person's freedom cannot be measured without reference to their considered preferences and judgments, and rational thinking itself requires the freedom to think independently. He draws on social choice theory, a field he helped build, to examine these links. The volume also includes his previously unpublished Arrow Lectures, which address how freedom should be assessed, and the essays together extend his work on economic theory and social philosophy.