Science, Tech, Math › Social Sciences The Maximin Principle in Economics Share Flipboard Email Print Image Source / Getty Images Social Sciences Economics U.S. Economy Employment Supply & Demand Psychology Sociology Archaeology Ergonomics By Jodi Beggs Jodi Beggs Economics Expert Ph.D., Business Economics, Harvard University M.A., Economics, Harvard University B.S., Massachusetts Institute of Technology Jodi Beggs, Ph.D., is an economist and data scientist. She teaches economics at Harvard and serves as a subject-matter expert for media outlets including Reuters, BBC, and Slate. Learn about our Editorial Process Updated on March 30, 2019 The maximan principle is a justice criterion proposed by the philosopher Rawls. A principle about the just design of social systems, e.g. rights and duties. According to this principle the system should be designed to maximize the position of those who will be worst off in it. "The basic structure is just throughout when the advantages of the more fortunate promote the well-being of the least fortunate, that is, when a decrease in their advantages would make the least fortunate even worse off than they are. The basic structure is perfectly just when the prospects of the least fortunate are as great as they can be." -Rawls, 1973, p. 328 (Econterms) Cite this Article Format mla apa chicago Your Citation Beggs, Jodi. "The Maximin Principle in Economics." ThoughtCo, Aug. 26, 2020, thoughtco.com/definition-of-the-maximin-principle-4099744. Beggs, Jodi. (2020, August 26). The Maximin Principle in Economics. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/definition-of-the-maximin-principle-4099744 Beggs, Jodi. "The Maximin Principle in Economics." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/definition-of-the-maximin-principle-4099744 (accessed March 25, 2023). copy citation