The Scope of Analysis in the Socialist Calculation Debate

Abstract

In the original history of the socialist calculation debate (e.g., Bergson, 1948), Oscar Lange proved that bureaucrats can find the equivalent of equilibrium prices through trial and error. In the revised history of this debate (e.g., Caldwell, 1997; Lavoie, 1985), Lange proposed an erroneous solution to the calculation problem. Dynamic entrepreneurial rivalry moves prices toward equilibrium. Lange and other “Market Socialists” allies thought only in terms of a static competitive market equilibrium that excludes the role entrepreneurs play in adjusting prices.

Citation

MacKenzie, D.W. (2011), "The Scope of Analysis in the Socialist Calculation Debate", Biddle, J.E. and Emmett, R.B. (Ed.) Research in the History of Economic Thought and Methodology (Research in the History of Economic Thought and Methodology, Vol. 29 Part 1), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 95-126. https://doi.org/10.1108/S0743-4154(2011)000029A010