science

Homo Oeconomicus

Homo Oeconomicus is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Homo Oeconomicus rather than just read about it. In short: Homo Oeconomicus is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal covering studies in classical and neoclassical economics, public and social choice theory, law and economics, and philosophy of economics. It was established in 1983 as an occasional series concerned with aspects of the Homo economicus concept.

Key takeaways

Homo Oeconomicus belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Homo Oeconomicus to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Homo Oeconomicus from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Homo Oeconomicus is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal covering studies in classical and neoclassical economics, public and social choice theory, law and economics, and philosophy of economics. It was established in 1983 as an occasional series concerned with aspects of the Homo economicus concept. The founding editor-in-chief was Manfred J. Holler (University of Hamburg). The current editors-in-chief are Manfred J. Holler (University of Hamburg), John Hudson (University of Bath), Hartmut Kliemt (Frankfurt School of Finance & Management), and Martin Leroch (University of Mainz). Originally published in German, all articles have been in English since 1998. The mixture of German and English articles deterred some subscribers and subscriptions picked up after the journal stopped accepting German language submissions.

References

External links Official website archived on April 4th 2016. Homo Oeconomicus at EconPapers

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Homo Oeconomicus

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Homo Oeconomicus claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Homo Oeconomicus before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Homo Oeconomicus ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Homo Oeconomicus

In research: Homo Oeconomicus appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Homo Oeconomicus in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Homo Oeconomicus is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Academic journals established in 1983, Economics journal stubs, Economics journals, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Homo Oeconomicus outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

Ask Teacher Smith questions about this articleOpens your AI tutor with a question about “Homo Oeconomicus” →

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Homo Oeconomicus in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Homo Oeconomicus means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Homo Oeconomicus out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Homo Oeconomicus in simple terms?

Why does Homo Oeconomicus matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Homo Oeconomicus?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Homo Oeconomicus.