marginalistisesti

Marginalistisesti is a Finnish adverb meaning “in a marginalist fashion” or “marginalistically.” It describes performing an analysis, argument, or evaluation from a marginalist perspective, i.e., focusing on marginal changes such as the addition or subtraction of a unit, rather than on totals or averages.

The word derives from marginalistinen, “marginalist,” and from marginalismi, “marginalism,” a theoretical framework in neoclassical economics that emphasizes marginal values, marginal utility, and marginal costs. The concept of marginalism was developed in the late 19th century by economists such as Jevons, Menger, and Walras, and later extended in welfare economics and optimization theory. In Finnish scholarship, marginalismi and marginalistisesti are used to describe analytic approaches consistent with these ideas.

Usage and examples: In academic Finnish, one might say “Tutkimus lähestyy ongelmaa marginalistisesti” or “Päätöksenteko arvioitiin marginalistisesti,” conveying that the analysis concentrates on incremental changes rather than totals. The adverb is most common in economics and philosophy discussions about value theory, welfare economics, or decision theory; outside those fields it is rarely used and may sound technical.

Relation to terminology: The English equivalents are “marginalist” (adj.), “marginalistically” (adv.), or the approach “marginalism” in economic theory. The term highlights the methodological emphasis on the margin, the point of smallest change that can alter outcomes, and the concept of optimization under constraints.