Abstract

The political theory of F. A. Hayek is built on the concept of spontaneous order, which refers to the unplanned emergence of order in society as the consequence of goal-directed individual action. Hayek uses this concept to explain the development of knowledge, the evolution of moral and legal rules, and the functioning of the market economy. He also uses the concept of spontaneous order to defend traditional rules and the market; he defends these in terms of the great volume of information that can be contained in traditions and market prices. The idea of spontaneous social order is used in two distinct senses. In one sense, it means the pattern emerging from individuals' actions under a given set of rules. In another, it means the evolutionary process through which rules emerge as an unplanned by-product of individuals' actions. These senses of spontaneous order conflict with one another in Hayek's political theory when he permits rules to be imposed on a society through coercive political organization. Such organization is contrary to the idea of social evolution as an unplanned process and is likely to extend the size of the society beyond that in which the evolutionary process can function properly. Under these conditions, the traditional order of rules Hayek believes necessary to the preservation of the free market is undermined, and the scope of state intervention expands through the demands of interest groups seeking advantages that erode voluntary market relations. He repeats some of the errors committed by Herbert Spencer but does not take note of the valuable insights on the normative requirements of spontaneous social processes found in Spencer's early writings