Moral Institutions: An Introduction to Philosophy, Politics, and Economics

Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) is a promising approach to understanding our complex world and addressing contemporary social issues. But what is it? This textbook aims to straightforwardly explain what PPE is to those who have never heard about it. The book uses a unified PPE approach that differs from a simple concatenation of moral philosophy, political science, and economics so that the reader can appreciate PPE’s distinctiveness. It makes salient the virtues of PPE as a unified approach through a study of two institutions that have been fundamental in making the world a better place: governments and markets. By the end, the reader will be confronted with the difficulty of finding the right answer to unprecedented questions in a morally diverse society. Hopefully, readers will be convinced that diversity of our liberal societies is what has made Open Societies peaceful and prosperous despite the permanent frustration that results from living in a complex, dynamic and uncertain world.

Mario I. Juarez-Garcia is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy and Political Economy at Tulane University, USA. His main research area is political corruption. He has published articles in the Journal of Moral Philosophy, Southern Economic Journal, Ethical Theory and Moral Practice, and Public Affairs Quarterly, among other specialized journals.