Abstraction and idealization of the homo economicus: The formation of the neoclassical notion of the rational agent

Abstract

The article presents a historical reconstruction of homo economicus. The aim is to show how the notion of agent went from being a holistic abstraction in Adam Smith to an idealizing abstraction where features of the human being are simplified and exaggerated. To this end, the notion of agent in Smith is reconstructed and then it is shown how in the works of John Stuart Mill, the marginalist revolution, perfect competition, an increasingly idealized notion of agent was formed which, already in the expected utility model, ceased to represent human beings. The text shows how this growing idealization was linked to the process of mathematization of economics. Finally, some epistemological advantages and disadvantages of the neoclassical notion of the rational agent are discussed.