Friedrich Hayek

Friedrich August von Hayek (May 8, 1899 in Vienna – March 23, 1992 in Freiburg) was an economist and social scientist of the Austrian School, noted for his defense of liberal democracy and free-market capitalism against a rising tide of socialist and collectivist thought in the mid-20th century. He also made important contributions to the fields of jurisprudence and cognitive science. He shared the 1974 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics with ideological rival Gunnar Myrdal.

Influence and recognition

By 1947, Hayek was the chief organizer of the Mont Pelerin Society, a group of classical liberals who sought to oppose what they saw as "socialism" in various areas. For many years their efforts remained on the intellectual fringes, but they have received increasing attention over the past 30 years.

Related Topics:
1947 - Mont Pelerin Society

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In his speech at the 1974 Nobel Prize banquet, Hayek, whose work emphasized the fallibility of individual knowledge about economic and social arrangements, expressed his misgivings about promoting the perception of economics as a strict science on par with physics, chemistry, or medicine (the academic disciplines recognized by the original Nobel Prizes).

Related Topics:
1974 - Nobel Prize - Physics - Chemistry - Medicine

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While there is some dispute as to the matter of influence, Hayek had a long standing and close friendship with philosopher of science Karl Popper, also from Vienna. Each found support and similarities in each other's work and cited each other often, though not without qualification. In a letter to Hayek in 1944, Popper stated, "I think I have learnt more from you than from any other living thinker, except perhaps Alfred Tarski." (See Hacohen, 2000). Popper dedicated his Conjectures and Refutations to Hayek. For his part, Hayek dedicated a collection of papers, Studies in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics, to Popper, and in 1982 said, "...ever since his Logik der Forschung first came out in 1934, I have been a complete adherent to his general theory of methodology." (See Weimer and Palermo, 1982). Popper was also a participant at the 1947 inaugural meeting of the Mont Pelerin Society, organized by Hayek.

Related Topics:
Karl Popper - 1944 - Alfred Tarski - 1982 - 1934

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Even after his death, Hayek maintained a significant intellectual presence in the universities where he had taught: the London School of Economics, the University of Chicago, and the University of Freiburg. A student-run group, the LSE Hayek Society, was established in his honor. The Cato Institute, one of Washington, D.C.'s leading think tanks, named its lower level auditorium after Hayek, who had been a Distinguished Senior Fellow at Cato during his later years.

Related Topics:
Hayek Society - Cato Institute

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