Social Contract
Published:
The idea of a social contract is often introduced as a philosophical abstraction: an imagined agreement through which individuals consent to authority in exchange for security and order. Yet historically, social contracts are not ideals invented first and implemented later. They are ex post equilibria—practical arrangements that stabilize societies after major shifts in how value is created and distributed. Whenever a new production technology fundamentally alters this balance, the prevailing social contract comes under strain and is eventually redesigned.