ABSTRACT
This chapter is concerned to do three things: to explain in general terms how the modern form
of the state developed; to reconsider the approach of rational choice theory in explaining the
relations between the state and its citizens; and to show how such an approach can be used to
justify programmes of political reform. Rational choice theory is used specifically to reinterpret
themes in political philosophy and to launch a radical critique of current forms of governance.
The underlying purpose of the chapter as a whole is to show how rational choice theory can be
used to throw light on the process of development of the relations between the state and its
