Jon Elster (born 1940) is a Norwegian social and political theorist who has authored works in the philosophy of social science and rational choice theory. He is also a notable proponent of Analytical Marxism, and a critic of neoclassical economics and public choice theory, largely on behavioral and psychological grounds. Elster earned his PhD from the Sorbonne in Paris with a dissertation on Leibniz under the direction of Raymond Aron. Elster was a member of the September Group for many years but left in the early 1990's. Elster previously taught at the University of Oslo in the department of history and held an endowed chairs at the University of Chicago, teaching in the departments of philosophy and political science. He is now Robert K. Merton Professor of Social Sciences with appointments in Political Science and Philosophy at Columbia University. He was awarded the Jean Nicod Prize in 1997. 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1940 calendar). ... A political theorist is someone who engages in political theory. ... Philosophy of social science is the scholarly elucidation and debate of accounts of the nature of the social sciences, their relations to each other, and their relations to the natural sciences (see natural science). ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Decision theory. ... Analytical Marxism refers to a style of thinking about Marxism that was prominent amongst English-speaking philosophers and social scientists during the 1980s. ... Neoclassical economics refers to a general approach (a metatheory) to economics based on supply and demand which depends on individuals (or any economic agent) operating rationally, each seeking to maximize their individual utility or profit by making choices based on available information. ... Public choice theory is a branch of economics that studies the decision-making behavior of voters, politicians and government officials from the perspective of economic theory, namely game theory and decision theory. ... The Sorbonne, Paris, in a 17th century engraving The Sorbonne today, from the same point of view The Sorbonne is frequently used in ordinary parlance as synonymous with the faculty of theology of Paris or the University of Paris in its entirety. ... Gottfried Leibniz Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz (July 1, 1646 in Leipzig - November 14, 1716 in Hannover) was a German philosopher, scientist, mathematician, diplomat, librarian, and lawyer of Sorb descent. ... Raymond Aron (March 14, 1905 — October 17, 1983) was a French philosopher, sociologist and political scientist. ... The September Group (also known as the No-Bullshit Marxism Group) is a small circle of scholars interested in Analytical Marxism. ... The University of Oslo (in Norwegian Universitetet i Oslo, in Latin Universitas Osloensis) was founded in 1811 as Universitas Regia Fredericiana (the Royal Frederick University, in Norwegian Det Kongelige Frederiks Universitet). ... The University of Chicago is a private university located principally in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago. ... Columbia University is a private university whose main campus lies in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of the Borough of Manhattan in New York City. ... The Jean Nicod Prize is awarded annually in Paris to a leading philosopher of mind or philosophically oriented cognitive scientist. ... 1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

He is the son of journalist/author Torolf Elster and poet Magli Elster.

Selected Writings

• Logic and Society (New York, 1978)
• Ulysses and the Sirens (Cambridge, 1979)
• Sour Grapes: Studies in the Subversion of Rationality (Cambridge, 1983)
• Explaining Technical Change : a Case Study in the Philosophy of Science (Oslo, 1983)
• Making Sense of Marx (Cambridge, 1985)
• An Introduction to Karl Marx (Cambridge, 1986)
• Nuts and Bolts for the Social Sciences (Cambridge, UK, 1989)
• Strong Feelings: Emotion, Addiction, and Human Behavior The Jean Nicod Lectures. (MIT press, 1997)
• Alchemies of the Mind: Rationality and the Emotions (Cambridge, 1999)
• Ulysses Unbound: Studies in Rationality, Precommitment, and Constraints (Cambridge, 2002)
• Closing the Books: Transitional Justice in Historical Perspective (Cambridge, 2004)

See also

• G. A. Cohen
• John Roemer
• List of Jean Nicod Prize laureates

Gerald Allen Cohen, (born 1941) is the Chichele Professor of Social and Political Theory, All Souls College, Oxford. ... John Roemer is an American economist. ... The Jean Nicod Prize is awarded annually in Paris to a leading philosopher of mind or philosophically oriented cognitive scientist. ...

External links

• Elster page at Columbia