The Economics of Rights, Co-operation and Welfare is a book that attempts to understand social order and morality as conventions. It uses evolutionary game theory, a method that was not widely used in the social sciences when the book was first published in 1986. The book was well-received by economists, political theorists, and philosophers, but it went out of print before the evolutionary approach became popular. In the second edition, the author has compiled the book with the aim of making a contribution to current discussions. The author has not revised the text but has added two sections of commentary: an introduction and an afterword. The author reflects on how the book was written and why the new edition takes the form it does. The book is based on the idea that social order is grounded on convention and that the emergence and persistence of conventions can be explained by evolutionary forms of game theory. The author draws on ideas from David Hume and Adam Smith, as well as from Schelling, Lewis, and Maynard Smith. The book is intended to apply to all human societies at all times, and the author acknowledges that some examples may be outdated. The author also acknowledges that evolutionary game theory has advanced since the book was first published, and that the book's language is not the same as the modern one. The author concludes that the book is probably the best he will ever write and that he does not want to spoil it. The author has allowed himself only the role of editor in this edition. In the afterword, he explains how the arguments of the book relate to subsequent work on the evolution of conventions and norms, and how he thinks they stand up against objections that have been made by critical readers. He argues that, for the most part, they stand up well. The author is grateful for all the comments that have been given to him in response to the arguments in the book. He acknowledges the help of many people who have contributed to his ideas. The author also acknowledges the help of Peter Newman, who persuaded Palgrave Macmillan to publish a second edition of the book.The Economics of Rights, Co-operation and Welfare is a book that attempts to understand social order and morality as conventions. It uses evolutionary game theory, a method that was not widely used in the social sciences when the book was first published in 1986. The book was well-received by economists, political theorists, and philosophers, but it went out of print before the evolutionary approach became popular. In the second edition, the author has compiled the book with the aim of making a contribution to current discussions. The author has not revised the text but has added two sections of commentary: an introduction and an afterword. The author reflects on how the book was written and why the new edition takes the form it does. The book is based on the idea that social order is grounded on convention and that the emergence and persistence of conventions can be explained by evolutionary forms of game theory. The author draws on ideas from David Hume and Adam Smith, as well as from Schelling, Lewis, and Maynard Smith. The book is intended to apply to all human societies at all times, and the author acknowledges that some examples may be outdated. The author also acknowledges that evolutionary game theory has advanced since the book was first published, and that the book's language is not the same as the modern one. The author concludes that the book is probably the best he will ever write and that he does not want to spoil it. The author has allowed himself only the role of editor in this edition. In the afterword, he explains how the arguments of the book relate to subsequent work on the evolution of conventions and norms, and how he thinks they stand up against objections that have been made by critical readers. He argues that, for the most part, they stand up well. The author is grateful for all the comments that have been given to him in response to the arguments in the book. He acknowledges the help of many people who have contributed to his ideas. The author also acknowledges the help of Peter Newman, who persuaded Palgrave Macmillan to publish a second edition of the book.