In this paper, we perform a text analysis of Adam Smith’s two books, the Theory of Moral Sentiments and the Wealth of Nations, to better characterize their highly disputed differences in terms of moral cognition. In particular, given that Smith’s ideas are still very cited and influential in the current scholarly debate on moral cognition, we are interested in understanding whether a text analysis would unveil a semantic structure that is in line with a dual process theory interpretation or, alternatively, with a neuro-emergent cognition one. We find that, despite that the intellectual koine in which Smith’s thought was originally embedded would be more in line with a dual process theory approach, the analysis reveals a better consonance with the neuro-emergent cognition approach. This opens new and interesting perspectives in future research on the moral cognition of market interactions in a Smithian tradition of thought.
AshrafNCamererCFLoewensteinG (2005) Adam Smith, behavioral economist. Journal of Economic Perspectives19(3): 131–145.
2.
AysarR (2020) The Evolutionary Origin of Markets. How Evolution, Psychology, and Biology Have Shaped the Economy. London: Routledge.
3.
BevanDWerhaneP (2015) The inexorable sociality of commerce: The individual and others in Adam Smith. Journal of Business Ethics127(2): 327–335.
4.
BosseDAPhillipsRA (2016) Agency theory and bounded self-interest. Academy of Management Review41(2): 276–297.
5.
BouldingKE (1991) What is evolutionary economics?Journal of Evolutionary Economics1(1): 9–17.
6.
BrébanLGilardoneM (2020) A missing touch of Adam Smith in Amartya Sen’s account of public reasoning: The man within for the man without. Cambridge Journal of Economics44(2): 257–283.
7.
BrosnanSF (2011) An evolutionary perspective on morality. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization77(1): 23–30.
8.
BrosnanSF (2013) Justice- and fairness-related behaviors in nonhuman primates. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America110(suppl. 2): 10416–10423.
9.
BrownV (2009) Agency and discourse: Revisiting the Adam Smith problem. In: YoungJT (ed) The Elgar Companion to Adam Smith. Cheltenham: Elgar, pp. 52–72.
10.
BuonMSeara-CardosoAVidingE (2016) Why (and how) should we study the interplay between emotional arousal, theory of mind, and inhibitory control to understand moral cognition?Psychonomic Bulletin and Review23(6): 1660–1680.
11.
BzdokDGrossDEickhoffSB (2015) The neurobiology of moral cognition: Relation to theory of mind, empathy, and mind-wandering. In: ClausenJLevyN (eds), Handbook of Neuroethics. Dordrecht: Springer, pp. 127–148.
12.
CaldasJCNarciso CostaABurnsTS (2007) Rethinking economics: The potential contribution of the classics. Cambridge Journal of Economics31(1): 25–40.
13.
CapraroVHalpernJY (2019) Translucent players: Explaining cooperative behavior in social dilemmas. Rationality and Society31(4): 371–408.
14.
CritcherCRDunningD (2011) No good deed goes unquestioned: Cynical reconstruals maintain belief in the power of self-interest. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology47(6): 1207–1213.
15.
DixonWWilsonD (2014) Political economy and the social disciplines: The modern life of Das Adam Smith Problem. Cambridge Journal of Economics38(3): 623–641.
16.
EisenbergNMussenPH (1989) The Roots of Prosocial Behavior in Children. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
17.
EvenskyJ (1987) The two voices of Adam Smith: Moral philosopher and social critic. History of Political Economy19(3): 447–468.
18.
FogassiL (2011) The mirror neuron system: How cognitive functions emerge from motor organization. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization77(1): 66–75.
19.
FrankRH (1993) The strategic role of the emotions: Reconciling over- and undersocialized accounts of behavior. Rationality and Society5(2): 160–184.
20.
FrankRH (2011) The strategic role of the emotions. Emotion Review3(3): 252–254.
21.
GlazeS (2017) Adam Smith and William James on the psychological basis of progress. Cambridge Journal of Economics41(2): 349–365.
22.
GraaflandJWellsTR (2021) In Adam Smith’s own words: The role of virtues in the relationship between free market economies and societal flourishing. A semantic network data-mining approach. Journal of Business Ethics172(1): 31–42.
23.
GrantAMPatilSV (2012) Challenging the norm of self-interest: Minority influence and transitions to helping norms in work units. Academy of Management Review37(4): 547–568.
24.
GreeneJ (2013) Moral Tribes. Emotion, Reason and the Gap between Us and Them. London: Penguin.
25.
GreeneJDSommervilleRBNystromLE, et al. (2001) An fMRI investigation of emotional engagement in moral judgment. Science293(5537): 2105–2108.
26.
GreeneJDNystromLEEngellAD, et al. (2004) The neural bases of cognitive conflict and control in moral judgment. Neuron44(2): 389–400.
27.
HaigD (2011) Sympathy with Adam Smith and reflexions on self. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization77(1): 4–13.
28.
HardinR (2013) The priority of social order. Rationality and Society25(4): 407–421.
29.
HarrellA (2021) How can I help you? Multiple resource availability promotes generosity with low-value (but not high-value) resources. Rationality and Society33(3): 341–362.
30.
HauskenK (1996) Self-interest and sympathy in economic behaviour. International Journal of Social Economics23(1): 4–24.
31.
HelionCOchsnerKN (2018) The role of emotion regulation in moral judgment. Neuroethics11(3): 297–308.
32.
HelionCPizarroDA (2015) Beyond dual-processes: The interplay of reason and emotion in moral judgment. In: ClausenJLevyN (eds), Handbook of Neuroethics. Dordrecht: Springer, pp. 109–125.
33.
HillL (2001) The hidden theology of Adam Smith. The European Journal of the History of Economic Thought8(1): 1–29.
34.
HodgsonGM (1998) Evolutionary economics. Handbook of Economic Methodology. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar, pp. 160–164.
35.
HouseBRKanngiesserPBarrettHC, et al. (2020) Universal norm psychology leads to societal diversity in prosocial behaviour and development. Nature Human Behaviour4(1): 36–44.
36.
HudikM (2019) Two interpretations of the rational choice theory and the relevance of behavioral critique. Rationality and Society31(4): 464–489.
37.
HühnMP (2019) Adam Smith’s philosophy of science: Economics as moral imagination. Journal of Business Ethics155(1): 1–15.
38.
HühnMPDierksmeierC (2016) Will the real A. Smith please stand up. Journal of Business Ethics136(1): 119–132.
39.
JacksonBR (2021) Custom and moral variability: An interpretation of part V of Smith’s Theory of Moral Sentiments. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization184: 804–812.
40.
JonesHB (2010) Marcus Aurelius, the stoic ethic, and Adam Smith. Journal of Business Ethics95(1): 89–96.
41.
KhalilEL (2011) The mirror neuron paradox: How far is understanding from mimicking?Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization77(1): 86–96.
42.
Kish-GephartJDetertJTreviñoLK, et al. (2014) Situational moral disengagement: Can the effects of self-interest be mitigated?Journal of Business Ethics125(2): 267–285.
43.
KleinS (2003) The natural roots of capitalism and its virtues and values. Journal of Business Ethics45(4): 387–401.
44.
KurzHD (2016) Adam Smith on markets, competition and violations of natural liberty. Cambridge Journal of Economics40(2): 615–638.
45.
LindenbergSStegLMilovanovicM, et al. (2018) Moral hypocrisy and the hedonic shift: A goal-framing approach. Rationality and Society30(4): 393–419.
46.
LongD (1991) Taking Interests Seriously. Rationality and Society3(3): 343–364.
47.
MacyMW (1997) Identity, interest and emerging rationality. An evolutionary synthesis. Rationality and Society9(4): 427–448.
48.
MartinC (2021) Adam Smith and the poor: A textual analysis. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization184: 837–849.
49.
MeardonSJOrtmannA (1996) Self-command in Adam Smith’s Theory of Moral Sentiments. A game-theoretic interpretation. Rationality and Society8(1): 57–80.
50.
MillerDT (1999) The norm of self-interest. The American Psychologist54(12): 1053–1060.
51.
MollJZahnRde Oliveira-SouzaR, et al. (2005) Opinion: the neural basis of human moral cognition. Nature Reviews. Neuroscience6(10): 799–809.
52.
MollJde Oliveira-SouzaR (2007) Moral judgments, emotions and the utilitarian brain. Trends in Cognitive Sciences11(8): 319–321.
53.
MollJde Oliveira-SouzaRGarridoGJ, et al. (2007) The self as a moral agent: Linking the neural bases of social agency and moral sensitivity. Social Neuroscience2(3–4): 336–352.
54.
MollJSchulkinJ (2009) Social attachment and aversion in human moral cognition. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews33(3): 456–465.
55.
Molnar-SzakacsI (2011) From actions to empathy and morality – A neural perspective. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization77(1): 76–85.
56.
MontesL (2003) Das Adam Smith Problem: Its origins, the stages of the current debate, and one implication for our understanding of sympathy. Journal of the History of Economic Thought25(1): 63–90.
57.
MontesL (2019) Adam Smith’s foundational idea of sympathetic persuasion. Cambridge Journal of Economics43(1): 1–15.
58.
MuellerPD (2021) Adam Smith on moral judgment: Why people tend to make better judgments within liberal institutions. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization184: 813–825.
59.
OslingtonP (2012) God and the market: Adam Smith’s Invisible Hand. Journal of Business Ethics108(4): 429–438.
60.
OttesonJR (2000) The recurring ‘Adam Smith problem. History of Philosophy Quarterly17(1): 51–74.
61.
PackSJSchliesserE (2018) Adam Smith, natural movement and physics. Cambridge Journal of Economics42(2): 505–521.
62.
PaganelliMP (2008) The Adam Smith problem in reverse: Self-interest in the wealth of nations and the theory of moral sentiments. History of Political Economy40(2): 365–382.
63.
PaganelliMP (2011) The same face of the two Smiths: Adam Smith and Vernon Smith. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization78(3): 246–255.
64.
PaganelliMPSchumacherR (2019) Do not take peace for granted: Adam Smith’s warning on the relation between commerce and war. Cambridge Journal of Economics43(3): 785–797.
65.
PennebakerJWChungCKIrelandM, et al. (2007) The Development and Psychometric Properties of LIWC 2007. University of Texas at Austin and University of Auckland, Austin TX. https://www.liwc.net/LIWC2007LanguageManual.pdf(accessed 27 December 2021).
66.
PerskyJ (1995) Retrospectives: The ethology of homo economicus. Journal of Economic Perspectives9(2): 221–231.
67.
RasmussenDC (2006) Does ‘bettering our condition’ really make us better off? Adam Smith on progress and happiness. American Political Science Review100(3): 309–318.
68.
RatnerRKMillerDT (2001) The norm of self-interest and its effects on social action. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology81(1): 5–16.
69.
RobbinsEShepardJRochatP (2017) Variations in judgments of intentional action and moral evaluation across eight cultures. Cognition164: 22–30.
70.
RothschildE (1994) Adam Smith and the Invisible Hand. American Economic Review Papers and Proceedings84(2): 319–322.
71.
SchliesserE (2011) Reading Adam Smith after Darwin: On the evolution of propensities, institutions, and sentiments. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization77(1): 14–22.
72.
SimpsonBIrwinKLawrenceP (2006) Does a ‘norm of self-interest’ discourage prosocial behavior? Rationality and quid pro quo in charitable giving. Social Psychology Quarterly69(3): 296–306.
73.
SmithVL (2010) What would Adam Smith think?Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization73(1): 83–86.
74.
SonghorianS (2022) Adam Smith’s relevance for contemporary moral cognition. Philosophical Psychology35(5): 662–683.
75.
StavrovaOEhlebrachtD (2019) The cynical genius illusion: Exploring and debunking lay beliefs about cynicism and competence. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin45(2): 254–269.
76.
StringhamEP (2011) Embracing morals in economics: The role of internal moral constraints in a market economy. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization78(1): 98–109.
77.
TribeK (1999) Adam Smith: Critical theorist?Journal of Economic Literature37(2): 609–632.
78.
TribeK (2008) ‘Das Adam Smith problem’ and the origins of modern Smith scholarship. History of European Ideas34(4): 514–525.
79.
van der IestHDijkstraJStokmanFN (2011) Not ‘just the two of us’: Third party externalities of social dilemmas. Rationality and Society23(3): 347–370.
80.
Zahn-WaxlerCColePMWelshJD, et al. (1995) Psychophysiological correlates of empathy and prosocial behaviors in preschool children with behavior problems. Development and Psychopathology7(1): 27–48.
81.
ZakPJ (2011a) The physiology of moral sentiments. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization77(1): 53–65.
82.
ZakPJ (2011b) Moral markets. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization77(1): 212–233.
83.
ZakiJNeumannEBaltianskyD (2021) Market cognition: How exchange norms alter social experience. Current Directions in Psychological Science30(3): 236–241.
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
