SPONTANEOUS GROWTH, USE OF REASON, AND CONSTITUTIONAL DESIGN: IS F. A. HAYEK'S SOCIAL THOUGHT CONSISTENT?
In: Journal of the history of economic thought, Band 40, Heft 3, S. 353-376
ISSN: 1469-9656
Many commentators have pointed out the presence of a tension, even a contradiction or inconsistency, between two theses advanced by Friedrich Hayek: that the growth of institutions ought to be spontaneous rather than consciously designed, and that the conscious design of a constitution is necessary, so as to secure a desirable social order. Our paper shows via textual analysis that, far from being irreconcilable, these two theses, on the contrary, complement each other.