| Abstrakt: |
The study of charitable giving is the stepchild of economics. One looks in vain in most textbooks in the dismal science for even one entry. Yes, yes, it accounts for a smaller share of the GDP than wages, interest payments, profits, and other desiderata. However, the amounts donated are not insignificant. But, even if voluntary donations were near zero, this phenomenon should still garner more interest than it has. This paper is an attempt in small part to rectify this misallocation of scarce intellectual resources. The science of economics--as expressed by the subjectivist method of the Austrian school--explains the logic of charitable action. Praxeology tells us that people act charitable with the hope that their action will move them from a less preferred state of being to one that is more preferred. The Austrian theory of charitable action says that charitable action is--as is any purposeful action--decidedly self-interested. While altruism is an important motive for many--if not most--charitable people; it is ultimately secondary to the primary purpose of human action: self-interest. Moreover, there are many other secondary motives with no connection to altruism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
