“斯密问题”的解读与启示——基于斯密人性观的再考察

A Reexamination of "Adam Smith Problem": Based on Smith's Perspective on Human Nature

亚当·斯密在《道德情操论》中认为人的主要动机是自利的,但他同时还承认存在次要的利他动机。因此,斯密实质上是人性二元论者。而在《国富论》中,其关于行为动机的自利设定只是出于构建理论体系的需要而对现实人性所作的必要抽象。综合考察《国富论》的研究主题和内容、斯密所处的历史发展阶段以及他关于自利设定的隐含预设,我们揭示这种抽象是合理的。因此,正是在上述意义上,"斯密问题"才是一个伪问题。澄清"斯密问题"的理论启示是:在构建经济理论时,需要基于现实情境合理地抽象出基本假设;实践启示是,构建适宜的道德基础对于我国市场经济的健康发展至关重要。

In The Theory of Moral Sentiments,Adam Smith presented self-interest as the major human behavioral motivation,while elucidating the pure altruistic motivation.He is actually a dualist on human nature.Smith assumed self-interested homo economicus in An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations.That is necessary simplification and abstraction for the construction of economic theory.However,we should not neglect the altruistic motive of economic agent beneath its self-interest motive assumption.The abstraction is proper and reasonable when taking the research topic and historical context of Adam Smith into account.Thus,we can assert Smith-Problem is in fact a pseudo problem,clarification of which indicates that the construction of economic theory needs reasonable assumptions abstracted from reality and that moral playing an important role in the development of china＇s marketing economy.