---
entity_slug: higgling_and_bargaining_of_the_market
evaluator: null
evaluated_at: '2026-02-23T05:34:29.306843'
overall_score: 4.2
scores:
- name: definition_precision
  value: 4.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: The definition clearly captures the negotiation process that leads to
    price discovery in markets, distinguishing it from other market mechanisms. It
    identifies specific factors (value perceptions, production difficulty, scarcity)
    that drive the bargaining process without being circular.
- name: source_grounding
  value: 5.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: Smith explicitly uses the phrase "higgling and bargaining of the market"
    in Book I, Chapter 5 when discussing how market processes determine relative values.
    This is directly grounded in the source text rather than being an interpretive
    overlay.
- name: domain_placement
  value: 5.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: '"Exchange" is the correct domain placement since this concept specifically
    describes the negotiation mechanisms through which market exchanges occur and
    prices are established. It''s fundamentally about the process of trading rather
    than production, distribution, or consumption.'
- name: vsm_relevance
  value: 3.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: This entity maps most naturally to S2 (coordination/anti-oscillation)
    as it describes how market participants coordinate through negotiation to prevent
    price chaos, though it also has elements of S1 (operational exchanges). The mapping
    is reasonable but not as clear-cut as more structural concepts.
- name: explanatory_value
  value: 4.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: "This entity illuminates a key mechanism by which markets actually function\u2014\
    the negotiation process that translates subjective valuations into objective prices.\
    \ It explains how the \"invisible hand\" operates through concrete human interactions\
    \ rather than just naming an abstract outcome."
---

# Evaluation: Higgling And Bargaining Of The Market

## definition_precision — 4.0 / 5.0

The definition clearly captures the negotiation process that leads to price discovery in markets, distinguishing it from other market mechanisms. It identifies specific factors (value perceptions, production difficulty, scarcity) that drive the bargaining process without being circular.

## source_grounding — 5.0 / 5.0

Smith explicitly uses the phrase "higgling and bargaining of the market" in Book I, Chapter 5 when discussing how market processes determine relative values. This is directly grounded in the source text rather than being an interpretive overlay.

## domain_placement — 5.0 / 5.0

"Exchange" is the correct domain placement since this concept specifically describes the negotiation mechanisms through which market exchanges occur and prices are established. It's fundamentally about the process of trading rather than production, distribution, or consumption.

## vsm_relevance — 3.0 / 5.0

This entity maps most naturally to S2 (coordination/anti-oscillation) as it describes how market participants coordinate through negotiation to prevent price chaos, though it also has elements of S1 (operational exchanges). The mapping is reasonable but not as clear-cut as more structural concepts.

## explanatory_value — 4.0 / 5.0

This entity illuminates a key mechanism by which markets actually function—the negotiation process that translates subjective valuations into objective prices. It explains how the "invisible hand" operates through concrete human interactions rather than just naming an abstract outcome.
