Evolution of Social Contract and State Models
Background
In the 17th century, remarkable intellectual and scientific advancements spurred new thinking about the nature of society and state, giving rise to theories of a social contract.
The Individualistic Model of Thomas Hobbes
Hobbes described the state of nature as one of misery and war. Reason, he argued, leads individuals to seek security through a pact establishing a commonwealth. This involves renouncing all rights except the right to life, transferring these rights to a sovereign. Hobbes advocated for an absolute state to guarantee peace, order, and security.
The Liberal Model of John Locke
Locke’s state of nature, unlike Hobbes’s, is not characterized by war. Individuals are free and enjoy the fruits of their labor. However, recognizing the drawbacks of this state, where enforcing individual rights leads to confusion and insecurity, individuals agree to form a civil society and government, ceding certain powers. Locke proposed a double contract: one between individuals to create the state, and another between individuals and government. This establishes legislative and executive powers, with ultimate power residing in the people.
The Universalist Model of Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Rousseau viewed democracy as man’s natural state, a paradise lost due to population growth, conflict, and ambition. The solution, he argued, is to create a civil society and surrender all rights to the community.
State Models
Liberal
This model opposes absolutist regimes, advocating for a sovereign power that facilitates individual pursuits within market rules. It emphasizes the development of civil society where individual interests are pursued.
Social
Emerging as a reaction to the social consequences of industrialization and free markets, socialism emphasizes equality through equal material conditions.
- Utopian Socialism sought to design an emancipated society free from human domination.
- Scientific Socialism/Communism, based on the ideas of Marx and Engels, views the state as a tool of the ruling class, to be overthrown by the proletariat in a revolution.
Welfare
Social Democrats, with a reformist view of socialism, aimed to regulate the economy and intervene when necessary. This model features a mixed economy, liberal freedoms, and a welfare sector ensuring economic and social rights.
Keynesian
Developed in response to the 1929 economic crisis, this model advocates for state intervention to regulate the economy, guide wealth, promote full employment, prevent overproduction, ensure economic growth, and regulate investment and consumption. It also emphasizes adapting mass consumption to productivity growth through government intervention.
Constitutionalism
Liberal Constitutionalism
Originating with the U.S. Constitution and the French Revolution, this model utilizes a presidential system and emphasizes individual rights.
Social Constitutionalism
This model, incorporating social demands resulting from economic modernization, was progressively adopted in European (Germany, 1919) and American (Mexico, 1917) constitutions.
Organizational Constitutionalism
Following World War II, this model emphasizes the legal organization of the rule of law, defending democratic norms and institutions.
Constitutionalism of Reality
Emerging in the late 20th century, this model focuses on the practical implementation of rights and guarantees, ensuring the effectiveness of the rule of law.