This paper contrasts the approaches of Alfred Marshall and Francis Y. Edgeworth to economics, paying particular attention to their views on moral philosophy and the role of mathematics in economics. Edgeworth's analysis of trade unions, stimulated by Marshall's discussion, is examined in...

This paper examines compensating wage differentials for an individual utility maximizing worker in a two-period framework in which labor supply is endogenous. Comparisons are made for a flat-rate and a two-tier pension containing an earnings-related component, allowing for other taxes and...

This paper considers the recent shift towards private provision of social security in the United Kingdom, as part of the "twin-pillar" approach of the Conservative government. Emphasis is on the encouragement of personal and occupational pensions, rather than public provision, above a basic...

This paper examines William Whewell's mathematical model of John Stuart Mill's analysis of international trade contained in his Principles. Several authors have argued that Whewell simply "translated" Mill into mathematics and that his analysis was marred by a mathematical error concerning the...

This paper examines take-up rates in a model in which there is a fixed non-refundable cost of applying for benefits. The model involves a joint decision regarding both labour supply and the take-up of the benefit. There is a single means-tested benefit involving a "taper rate" at which benefits...