K univerzálnosti, situatívnosti a relevancii modelu homo oeconomicus
DEALING WITH UNIVERSALITY, DEPENDENCE ON SITUATION AND RELEVANCE OF THE HOMO OECONOMICUS MODEL

Summary/Abstract: The article aims to draw attention to some methodological and contextual links of relevance of statements and situations analyzed in the economic theory to create a port-rayal of a human being and his situation determination. A specific model of human beha-viour included in many economic models as a presumption is the model of ration-ality and such behaviour known as homo oeconomicus. Certain problems occurs if this model is taken as a dominating approach to a human being in other social studies. The majority of authors including many economists refuse the approach called „economic imperialism“ or „colonization“ of the living space. The misunderstanding is based on considering homo oeconomicus being a paradigm for the interpretation and description of human nature in general. We must understand that this model has a cognitive importance and its meaning in the context of a special study in which it was created. When interpreting this model, it is essential that are the signs of economic rational-ity taken into account. Each concept of economic rationality provides a certain ar-rangement or structure of individual preferences. However, it does not say anything about their origin or their content. The changes in behaviour related to changed situa-tion will be judged from the perspective of this rationality. In this way we can forecast changes in the choice--distribution on the basis of general conditions. If we want to explain relations between description of a situation and a behaviour of a person, it is necessary to form a standardi-zed description of a situation. Individual behaviour as well as aggregates of individual performances, collective phenomena, can then be taken as the object of the theoretical research. Some hypotheses are formulated and verified on the aggregate level, but the true connection is expressed on the microlevel. Beyond the macrohypothesis there is a micro-model and the rule of aggregation, i. e. microfounda-tion. On the aggregate level we have to monitor the value-combinations of the aggregate characteristics. It is difficult to forecast the behaviour of a single individual. Although on the macro-level under the condition of stable preference-distribution it is possible to forecast cer-tain performance and influence it through restrictions of a particular situation. It is impossible, though, to pretend to complex portraying of the world. In this context, there is no need for polemic about the portrayal of a human being. But if we neutralize the incompatible specifications of the situation at the individual rather than at the aggregate level and to monitor performance of people unambiguously and adequatly to the situa-tion, we can recognize behaviour maximizing utility.

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