The Essence of Becker (Hoover Institution Press Publication)

Twenty-six essays in this volume showcase the brilliant originality and range of economic thought that earned Hoover Institution senior fellow Gary S. Becker the Nobel Prize in 1992 and corroborate his reputation as the leading figure in unconventional economics. This, the first published collection of Becker's papers, presents an overview of the fundamental theories and unorthodox applications that inspired Milton Friedman to call Becker "one of the most creative economists of our generation."
Becker's significant contributions evolve from an economic approach to analyzing social issues that ranges beyond those usually considered by economists. By questioning assumptions taken for granted in most economic modeling, Becker sheds new light on previously unconnected and poorly understood social phenomena. Becker's findings not only shift huge problems that other social scientists once considered immovable but also stand up to empirical challenge.
His singular axiom - that all actors in the social game are economic persons who maximize their advantages in different cost situations - allows Becker to study persistent racial and sexual discrimination, investment in human capital, crime and punishment, marriage and divorce, the family, drug addiction, and other apparently noneconomic dimensions of society. The essays presented here capture Becker's innovative analyses of these topics and include the text of his Nobel lecture, a personal assessment of his contributions to the profession.