Gebhard Kirchgässner
Biographic Data
| ID | 279783 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Gebhard Kirchgässner |
| GIVEN NAMES | Gebhard |
| FAMILY NAME | Kirchgässner |
| SIGNATURE | KIRCHGÄSSNER G |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of St.Gallen |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 33 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 196 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 33 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1983 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2024 |
| H-INDEX | 8 |
Demokratische Wirtschaftspolitik
Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. mult. Bruno S. Frey ist einer der bedeutendsten Ökonomen im deutschsprachigen Raum. Er lehrt und forscht an der Universität Basel
The debt brake of the German states
Direct Democracy
This paper discusses several problems of direct popular decisions. In the first part, we consider problems related to the functioning of direct democracy. As a political system it only makes sense if there exists a continuous process and not if only occasional single questions are brought to a referendum. Then, the relation between direct democracy and the rule of unanimity is discussed, a subject of special relevance to the European Union, befor…
The role of homo oeconomicus in the political economy of James Buchanan
Homo oeconomicus
Gebhard Kirchgässner stellt in seiner Arbeit das Modell individuellen rationalen Verhaltens dar, wie es der modernen ökonomischen Theorie zugrunde liegt und berücksichtigt seine wissenschaftstheoretischen Grundlagen. Dabei zeigt er, wie mit Hilfe dieses Modells 'kollektives Verhalten' erklärt werden kann, und wie sich gesellschaftliche Gegebenheiten aus nicht beabsichtigten Nebenfolgen individuell rationalen Verhaltens ergeben. In der vierten Auf…
The weak rationality principle in economics
The weak rationality principle is not an empirical statement but a heuristic rule for how to proceed in social sciences. It is a necessary ingredient of any ‘understanding’ social science in the Weberian sense. In this paper, first this principle and its role in economic theorizing are discussed. It is also explained why it makes sense to use a micro-foundation and, therefore, to employ the rationality assumption in economic models. Then, we disc…
Municipal debt in Switzerland
Federalism and exit costs
Critical Analysis of Some Well-Intended Proposals to Fight Unemployment
In this paper it is asked whether it is meaningful to state a ‘right to work’ as a basic human right to be written down in the constitution, for example, whether working time should generally be reduced, and whether those who do not have (or find) a job should get a guaranteed minimal income. All three demands have to be rejected, at least in the radical form in which they are often stated. They cannot be realised at all or at least not without i…
Financial and world economic crisis
In this paper we deal with two questions, (1) what are the origins of the current financial crisis, and (2) what did economists contribute, or why did economists fail to provide a convincing answer for the origins of the crisis, and possible solutions to overcome it? The economics profession apparently was unaware of the looming worldwide financial and economic crisis, and significantly underestimated its global dimensions and consequences. A fir…
Homo Oeconomicus
Direct democracy
On Some Problems to Apply the Economic Model of Behaviour in Political Science
After a short description of the economic model of behaviour it is shown that there are two reasons why problems arise if this model is applied to political processes and decisions. First, such decisions are often ‘low cost’, i.e. ‘wrong’ decisions have hardly any impact on the decision maker. Second, the behaviour of single individuals or small groups of individuals is to be explained. The common root of this problem is the difficulty to predict…
Is It Culture or Democracy? The Impact of Democracy and Culture on Happiness
Was treibt die Stimmbürger an die Urne? Eine empirische Untersuchung der Abstimmungsbeteiligung in der Schweiz, 1981-1999
Zunächst werden die theoretischen Überlegungen kurz dargelegt, die zur Entscheidungs- bzw. zur Mobilisierungshypothese führen. Zudem wird die Theorie des 'expressiven Wählens' vorgestellt, und es wird auf zwei weitere Hypothesen über Bestimmungsgründe der Stimmbeteiligung eingegangen. Danach wird der Schätzansatz beschrieben, bevor wir uns mit den empirischen Ergebnissen beschäftigen. Sie sprechen nicht nur sehr stark für die Mobilisierungs- und …
Wirtschaft und Politik in der Schweiz
Wertfreiheit und Objektivitat in den Wirtschaftswissenschaften
On the Political Economy of Environmental Policy
Does Direct Democracy Reduce Public Debt Evidence from Swiss Municipalities
Die Bedeutung moralischen Handelns für die Umweltpolitik
Daß es moralisch ist, die natürliche Umwelt zu erhalten, dürfte kaum bestritten werden. Es fehlt auch nicht an moralischen Appellen zum Schutz der Umwelt. Trotzdem belasten wir Luft, Wasser und Boden zunehmend mit Schadstoffen, das heißt wir handeln in vielen Fällen unserem eigenen moralischen Anspruch zuwider. Die Frage ist freilich, in welchen Situationen moralisches Handeln im Umweltbereich möglich und/oder notwendig ist. Die Auffassungen darü…
Probabilistic Voting and Equilibrium
Staatliche Bereitstellung von Gütern
Nach einer kurzen Darstellung der grundsätzlichen Staatsfunktionen wird zunächst auf die unterschiedlichen Möglichkeiten der Bereitstellung öffentlicher Güter (bzw. der Internalisierung externer Effekte) eingegangen. Dies wird insbesondere vor dem Hintergrund der Umweltproblematik diskutiert, wobei nicht nur die nationale, sondern auch die internationale Ebene betrachtet wird. Danach befassen wir uns mit Fragen der Umverteilung durch staatlich be…
Official and hidden unemployment and the popularity of the government
Märkte, Normen und das ökonomische Handlungsmodell
First it is shown that in order to function well markets depend on some preconditions even if there are no external effects and there is complete information. One of these conditions is that individuals follow some moral norms. Then it is asked whether these norms are non-consequentialist. There might be some norms for which no consequentialist foundation can be constructed. However, these are not the norms which have to be followed in order that…
Auf der Suche nach dem Gespenst des Ökonomismus
First, the role of markets as co-ordination mechanisms and, more generally, the role of exchange relations in a society is discussed. We consider illegal markets as well as markets where transactions are performed not using money but some other exchange medium. Secondly, we ask for the political possibilities to intervene into such markets. Finally, we discuss the increasing ,economising of social relations' and possible reasons for it
Is It Culture or Democracy? The Impact of Democracy and Culture on Happiness
Does Direct Democracy Reduce Public Debt Evidence from Swiss Municipalities
Economic conditions and the popularity of West German parties
The empirical work concerning the relation between economic conditions and the popularity of parties in the Federal Republic of Germany is surveyed. Research in this area started in 1971. During the first ten years (only) traditional econometrics were used. It was shown that the lower unemployment and/or inflation, the higher – ceteris paribus – the popularity of the leading party in government. In the 1980s, using modern time series methods, the…
Expected closeness and turnout
On the Political Economy of Environmental Policy
Official and hidden unemployment and the popularity of the government
Causality testing of the popularity function
Was treibt die Stimmbürger an die Urne? Eine empirische Untersuchung der Abstimmungsbeteiligung in der Schweiz, 1981-1999
Zunächst werden die theoretischen Überlegungen kurz dargelegt, die zur Entscheidungs- bzw. zur Mobilisierungshypothese führen. Zudem wird die Theorie des 'expressiven Wählens' vorgestellt, und es wird auf zwei weitere Hypothesen über Bestimmungsgründe der Stimmbeteiligung eingegangen. Danach wird der Schätzansatz beschrieben, bevor wir uns mit den empirischen Ergebnissen beschäftigen. Sie sprechen nicht nur sehr stark für die Mobilisierungs- und …
Probabilistic Voting and Equilibrium
The political business cycle if the government is not myopic
Municipal debt in Switzerland
Financial and world economic crisis
In this paper we deal with two questions, (1) what are the origins of the current financial crisis, and (2) what did economists contribute, or why did economists fail to provide a convincing answer for the origins of the crisis, and possible solutions to overcome it? The economics profession apparently was unaware of the looming worldwide financial and economic crisis, and significantly underestimated its global dimensions and consequences. A fir…
The role of homo oeconomicus in the political economy of James Buchanan
Direct democracy
The debt brake of the German states
Direct Democracy
This paper discusses several problems of direct popular decisions. In the first part, we consider problems related to the functioning of direct democracy. As a political system it only makes sense if there exists a continuous process and not if only occasional single questions are brought to a referendum. Then, the relation between direct democracy and the rule of unanimity is discussed, a subject of special relevance to the European Union, befor…
Diskursethik, Politische Ökonomie und Volksabstimmungen
First, the approaches of 'Diskursethik' (Discourse ethics) and of Modern Political Economy are described. While the latter investigates political decision processes, the former is concerned with the discourse process which takes place before a decision is made. This is shown by using referenda as an example. The discourse which takes place before referenda obviously does not conform to the ideal conditions defined in Diskursethik, but discourse a…
The influence of poll results on election outcomes
Federalism and exit costs
On Some Problems to Apply the Economic Model of Behaviour in Political Science
After a short description of the economic model of behaviour it is shown that there are two reasons why problems arise if this model is applied to political processes and decisions. First, such decisions are often ‘low cost’, i.e. ‘wrong’ decisions have hardly any impact on the decision maker. Second, the behaviour of single individuals or small groups of individuals is to be explained. The common root of this problem is the difficulty to predict…
Wirtschaft und Politik in der Schweiz
Märkte, Normen und das ökonomische Handlungsmodell
First it is shown that in order to function well markets depend on some preconditions even if there are no external effects and there is complete information. One of these conditions is that individuals follow some moral norms. Then it is asked whether these norms are non-consequentialist. There might be some norms for which no consequentialist foundation can be constructed. However, these are not the norms which have to be followed in order that…
The political business cycle if the government is not myopic
Causality testing of the popularity function
Economic conditions and the popularity of West German parties
The empirical work concerning the relation between economic conditions and the popularity of parties in the Federal Republic of Germany is surveyed. Research in this area started in 1971. During the first ten years (only) traditional econometrics were used. It was shown that the lower unemployment and/or inflation, the higher – ceteris paribus – the popularity of the leading party in government. In the 1980s, using modern time series methods, the…
U.S.-European Interest Rate Linkage
U.S.-European Interest Rate Linkage: A Time Series Analysis for West Germany, Switzerland, and the United States, The Review of Economics and Statistics, Vol. 69, No. 4 (Nov., 1987), pp. 675-684
The influence of poll results on election outcomes
Die neue Welt der Ökonomie
The article starts out with a sketch of the model of Individual behaviour, basic for modern economic theory, including the consideration of typical criticisms. The model then is examined in its application first to micro- and macroeconomic theorizing, then to the economic analysis of politics and of law. It concludes by pointing out some drawbacks inherent in the economic approach to the social sciences: economic imperialism, conservativism and t…
Diskursethik, Politische Ökonomie und Volksabstimmungen
First, the approaches of 'Diskursethik' (Discourse ethics) and of Modern Political Economy are described. While the latter investigates political decision processes, the former is concerned with the discourse process which takes place before a decision is made. This is shown by using referenda as an example. The discourse which takes place before referenda obviously does not conform to the ideal conditions defined in Diskursethik, but discourse a…
Auf der Suche nach dem Gespenst des Ökonomismus
First, the role of markets as co-ordination mechanisms and, more generally, the role of exchange relations in a society is discussed. We consider illegal markets as well as markets where transactions are performed not using money but some other exchange medium. Secondly, we ask for the political possibilities to intervene into such markets. Finally, we discuss the increasing ,economising of social relations' and possible reasons for it
Expected closeness and turnout
Märkte, Normen und das ökonomische Handlungsmodell
First it is shown that in order to function well markets depend on some preconditions even if there are no external effects and there is complete information. One of these conditions is that individuals follow some moral norms. Then it is asked whether these norms are non-consequentialist. There might be some norms for which no consequentialist foundation can be constructed. However, these are not the norms which have to be followed in order that…
Die Bedeutung moralischen Handelns für die Umweltpolitik
Daß es moralisch ist, die natürliche Umwelt zu erhalten, dürfte kaum bestritten werden. Es fehlt auch nicht an moralischen Appellen zum Schutz der Umwelt. Trotzdem belasten wir Luft, Wasser und Boden zunehmend mit Schadstoffen, das heißt wir handeln in vielen Fällen unserem eigenen moralischen Anspruch zuwider. Die Frage ist freilich, in welchen Situationen moralisches Handeln im Umweltbereich möglich und/oder notwendig ist. Die Auffassungen darü…
Probabilistic Voting and Equilibrium
Staatliche Bereitstellung von Gütern
Nach einer kurzen Darstellung der grundsätzlichen Staatsfunktionen wird zunächst auf die unterschiedlichen Möglichkeiten der Bereitstellung öffentlicher Güter (bzw. der Internalisierung externer Effekte) eingegangen. Dies wird insbesondere vor dem Hintergrund der Umweltproblematik diskutiert, wobei nicht nur die nationale, sondern auch die internationale Ebene betrachtet wird. Danach befassen wir uns mit Fragen der Umverteilung durch staatlich be…
Official and hidden unemployment and the popularity of the government
Does Direct Democracy Reduce Public Debt Evidence from Swiss Municipalities
On the Political Economy of Environmental Policy
Wertfreiheit und Objektivitat in den Wirtschaftswissenschaften
Was treibt die Stimmbürger an die Urne? Eine empirische Untersuchung der Abstimmungsbeteiligung in der Schweiz, 1981-1999
Zunächst werden die theoretischen Überlegungen kurz dargelegt, die zur Entscheidungs- bzw. zur Mobilisierungshypothese führen. Zudem wird die Theorie des 'expressiven Wählens' vorgestellt, und es wird auf zwei weitere Hypothesen über Bestimmungsgründe der Stimmbeteiligung eingegangen. Danach wird der Schätzansatz beschrieben, bevor wir uns mit den empirischen Ergebnissen beschäftigen. Sie sprechen nicht nur sehr stark für die Mobilisierungs- und …
Wirtschaft und Politik in der Schweiz
Is It Culture or Democracy? The Impact of Democracy and Culture on Happiness
Homo Oeconomicus
Direct democracy
On Some Problems to Apply the Economic Model of Behaviour in Political Science
After a short description of the economic model of behaviour it is shown that there are two reasons why problems arise if this model is applied to political processes and decisions. First, such decisions are often ‘low cost’, i.e. ‘wrong’ decisions have hardly any impact on the decision maker. Second, the behaviour of single individuals or small groups of individuals is to be explained. The common root of this problem is the difficulty to predict…
Critical Analysis of Some Well-Intended Proposals to Fight Unemployment
In this paper it is asked whether it is meaningful to state a ‘right to work’ as a basic human right to be written down in the constitution, for example, whether working time should generally be reduced, and whether those who do not have (or find) a job should get a guaranteed minimal income. All three demands have to be rejected, at least in the radical form in which they are often stated. They cannot be realised at all or at least not without i…
Financial and world economic crisis
In this paper we deal with two questions, (1) what are the origins of the current financial crisis, and (2) what did economists contribute, or why did economists fail to provide a convincing answer for the origins of the crisis, and possible solutions to overcome it? The economics profession apparently was unaware of the looming worldwide financial and economic crisis, and significantly underestimated its global dimensions and consequences. A fir…
Economics (27 works) · Political science (27 works) · Law (21 works) · Politics (19 works) · Law (16 works) · Philosophy (11 works) · Positive economics (11 works) · Macroeconomics (10 works) · Economic and Social Issues (9 works) · Electoral Systems and Political Participation (8 works)