Maxime reflects my thoughts on this issue almost completely, except s/he
wonders if the passive vs active use of the word "allocation" is a
relevant distinction. It is. I was earlier going to suggest that
Spencer's statement, "how markets allocate goods to households under
various market conditions," is what must have provoked the referee's
(not me, to be clear) concern. Many often are prone to using the
"market" as if it were a separate entity from the individuals who
participate in exchanges. But if Spencer's statement were recast as
their attempt to explain "how goods are allocated among households under
various market conditions [institutional arrangements]," the passive
(and proper) understanding of the noun "allocation" would be clear. I
have often found myself wondering why commentators about financial
markets, for example, say such things as, "the market doesn't like
uncertainty," when what they must have in mind is, "market participants
don't like uncertainty."
The active verb "to allocate" implies rationing by an authority. The
passive noun "allocation" or passive "allocated" does not. I also think
this is what Petur Jonsson implies with his earlier response,
"allocation is not just determined by the actions of a specific agent or
agency [active meaning], it can also be an outcome of a process [passive
meaning]."
James Ahiakpor
Maxime Desmarais-tremblay wrote:
> This is an interesting question Spencer!
>
> Perhaps economists started to talk of "allocation of resources" before
> talking of "allocation of goods ».
>
> It seems the former expression does indeed link back to the
> calculation debate. The first widespread use of the expression
> « allocation of resources » that I could find with a quick search is
> in Oskar Lange’s two parts paper "On the Economic Theory of Socialism"
> published in /The Review of Economic Studies/ in 1936 and 1937.
>
> But perhaps surprisingly, it is also used by Henry Simons in his 1934
> /A Positive Program for Laissez-faire/.
> Simons writes: "The effective functioning of our economic organization
> requires full utilization of existing resources—including labor, use
> of the best available technical methods, and, less obviously economic
> allocation of resources among available, alternative uses."
>
> I don’t think Simons was assuming a central planner. He was arguing
> that (provided certain conditions) "market values" or "prices" that
> result from "the free disposition of purchase power by individuals"
> can lead to an "allocation" which is an "efficient utilization of
> resources". p. 7-8.
>
> Then, it also features in the introduction of Samuelson’s /Economics
> /(1948).
> Samuelson argued that "traditional economics" (under full employment)
> was concerned by the "/wise/ allocation of fully employed resources".
>
> The question I don’t have the answer to is: when did (some) economists
> moved from the passive noun "allocation of resources" to the active
> verb "allocating resources/goods". Is this a relevant distinction?
>
> Hope this helps!
>
> Best wishes,
>
>
> Maxime
>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------
> Dr Maxime Desmarais-Tremblay
>
> Lecturer in Economics
> Institute of Management Studies
> Goldsmiths, University of London
> New Cross, London SE14 6NW
> UK
>
>> Le 1 août 2018 à 14:17, Spencer Banzhaf <[log in to unmask]
>> <mailto:[log in to unmask]>> a écrit :
>>
>> All,
>> A co-author and I are currently revising an empirical paper in which
>> we discuss how markets allocate goods to households under various
>> market conditions. Oddly, a referee is objecting to our use of the
>> word “allocate,” or at least expresses curiosity about it. (S)he
>> suggests it implies the existence of a social planner consciously
>> deciding who gets what.
>> Does anybody know when economists started using words like
>> “allocate,” and to what extent that vocabulary is tangled up in the
>> socialist calculation debate (or similar debates)? Is there anything
>> to the referee’s claim? If so, I’m interested. If not, I’d like to
>> reply with a historical argument arguing this is a standard vocabulary.
>> Thanks in advance for any suggestions,
>> Spencer
>> -------------------------------------------------
>> H. Spencer Banzhaf
>> Professor, Dept. of Economics
>> Georgia State University
>> PO Box 3992
>> Atlanta, GA 30302
>> http://www2.gsu.edu/~prchsb/ <http://www2.gsu.edu/%7Eprchsb/>
>
--
James C.W. Ahiakpor, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus
Department of Economics
California State University, East Bay
Hayward, CA 94542
510-885-3137
510-885-7175 (Fax; Not Private)
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