One framework for understanding markets is the invisible hand theory, an idea proposed by economist Adam Smith that illustrates the hidden, self-interested forces behind people's economic choices.

The invisible hand is a metaphor first used by Adam Smith in "The Theory of Moral Sentiments" in 1759 to describe how individual self-interest in free markets often leads to outcomes that benefit ...

Adam Smith published his ... These questions lead Smith to a formulation of the laws of the market. What he sought was "the invisible hand," as he called it, whereby "the private interests and ...