Anarchy, State and Utopia

A dominant protective association is the primary agency that enforces the protection of rights and the resolution of disputes in a geographical area. This entity emerges in a state of nature as the most effective and powerful organization for providing security and legal services, absorbing other protective associations. Nozick views this evolution as a natural progression toward a minimal state, where the dominant protective association assumes the role of a legitimate government, albeit with strictly limited powers.

Nozick introduces the concept of the invisible-hand explanation as a process through which social phenomena and institutions emerge in an unplanned manner from the actions of many individuals, rather than from deliberate design or planning. Nozick uses this concept to support his argument for a minimal state, suggesting that such a state could arise spontaneously as a product of individuals seeking to protect their rights, without the necessity for a central, organizing authority.

In Anarchy, State, and Utopia, the term “night-watchman state” refers to a concept of government with a very limited role, primarily focused on protecting individuals from force, theft, and fraud. This minimalist state ensures the enforcement of contracts and upholds law and order but does not engage in more extensive state activities like wealth redistribution or providing social services.

For Nozick, state-of-nature theories refer to the Lockean concept of societal organization in a pre-political form. John Locke and Thomas Hobbes used this concept to describe human life and the interactions that lead to the formation of society. Nozick uses this framework to examine the legitimacy and scope of the state, arguing that a minimal state can develop justly from a state of nature through voluntary arrangements without violating individual rights.