Zuber, Stéphane | 2019
Revue de Métaphysique et de Morale, 102, 23-37
This paper presents Derek Parfit’s contribution to the debate on the optimal population size, as it has been developed by economists. Parfit’s description of the “repugnant conclusion” and the “mere addition paradox” have challenged the utilitarian approaches adopted by economists before Parfit. This has led to new avenues of research on alternatives to utilitarianism and on the question of whether economic models may promote policies yielding to the repugnant conclusion.
