|
on History and Philosophy of Economics |
| By: | Maurício C. Coutinho (Universidade de Campinas); Carlos Eduardo Suprinyak (Cedeplar/UFMG) |
| Abstract: | Though contemporaries, Adam Smith and Sir James Steuart are commonly portrayed as men belonging to different eras. Whereas Smith went down in history both as founder of Classical Political Economy and patron of economic liberalism, Steuart became known as the last, outdated advocate of mercantilist policies in Britain. Smith himself was responsible for popularizing the notion of the ‘system of commerce’ as an approach to political economy that dominated British thought during the early modern period. As it evolved into a historiographical concept, the mercantile system came to be seen as an international trade theory grounded upon the fallacious doctrine of the favorable balance of trade. In the Wealth of Nations, however, Smith puts limited emphasis on international trade as a theoretical concern. His analysis of the subject, moreover, was marred by lack of analytical clarity, which caused him to be chastised by some among his followers who adhered more enthusiastically to the free trade cause. Given Smith’s doubtful credentials as a free trade theorist, in this paper we try to analyze the reasons that led him and Steuart to be historically placed on opposite sides of the mercantilist divide. To do so, we analyze the works of both authors in depth, showing that their disagreements in matters of economic policy have chiefly to do with different views about the role of money in the economy. Additionally, we explore how early-19th century writers helped forge the intellectual profiles of both Steuart and Smith. |
| Keywords: | Free trade, money, mercantilism, Adam Smith, James Steuart |
| JEL: | B11 B12 E40 F10 |
| Date: | 2018–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdp:texdis:td575&r=hpe |
| By: | Roberto Veneziani (Queen Mary University of London); Naoki Yoshihara (University of Massachusetts Amherst, Hitotsubashi University, and Kochi University of Technology) |
| Abstract: | This paper analyses the normative and positive foundations of the theory of exploitation as the unequal exchange of labour (UEL). The key intuitions behind all of the main approaches to UEL exploitation are explicitly analysed as a series of formal claims in a general economic environment. It is then argued that these intuitions can be captured by one fundamental axiom - called Labour Exploitation - which defines the basic domain of all UEL exploitation forms and identifies the formal and theoretical framework for the analysis of the appropriate definition of exploitation. |
| Keywords: | Exploitation, Unequal Exchange of Labour, axiomatic analysis |
| JEL: | D63 B51 |
| Date: | 2017–05–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:qmw:qmwecw:824&r=hpe |
| By: | Quentin Couix (CES - Centre d'économie de la Sorbonne - UP1 - Université Panthéon-Sorbonne - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique) |
| Abstract: | This paper proposes a historical and epistemological account of one of the key controversy between natural resources economics and ecological economics, lasting from early 1970s to the end of 1990s. It shows that the theoretical disagreement on the scope of the economy's dependence to natural resources, such as energy and minerals, has deep methodological roots. On one hand, Solow's and Stiglitz's works are built on a “model-based methodology”, where the model precedes and supports the conceptual foundations of the theory and in particular the assumption of “unbounded resources productivity”. On the other hand, Georgescu-Roegen's counter-assumption of “thermodynamic limits to production”, later revived by Daly, rest on a methodology of “interdisciplinary consistency” which considers thermodynamics as a relevant scientific referent for economic theory. While antagonistic, these two methodologies face similar issues regarding the conceptual foundations that arise from them, which is a source of confusion and of the difficult dialogue between paradigms. |
| Keywords: | natural resources,thermodynamics,growth,sustainability,model,theory,methodology |
| Date: | 2018–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:cesptp:halshs-01702401&r=hpe |
| By: | Heise, Arne |
| Abstract: | Economics as a discipline is currently in disarray. In the aftermath of the global financial crisis, academic experts, students, commentators, practitioners and politicians all questioned the status of academic economics and many called for a 'new economic thinking'. Nearly a decade later, however, there is little evidence of a transformation in research and teaching. Furthermore, economic policy based on mainstream economics is still prevalent. It is therefore necessary to consider how the discipline needs be transformed and thereby to provide an explanation for the resilience of the current mainstream. The present study first clarifies what is meant by a transformation of economics as a discipline, since this remains an ill-defined term and may be interpreted in very different ways. It then establishes the conditions of a successful transformation of the discipline in terms of intra-disciplinary and extra-disciplinary factors. The paper argues that economics as a discipline cannot be expected to trigger this transformation by itself (i.e. via self-regulation), since the 'market for economic ideas' is prone to market failure. In addition, the influence of external factors and actors on the market may serve to distort the congruence between the individual researcher's utility and societal welfare. External incentives are therefore required to establish constitutional guardrails that ensure fair competition between ideas. |
| Keywords: | pluralism,transformation,mainstream economics,heterodox economics,regulation |
| JEL: | A14 B40 B50 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:cessdp:67&r=hpe |
| By: | Jaelani, Aan |
| Abstract: | Economic behaviour in the study of Islamic economics is the basis for the government to portray political ethics and ethical economic functions of individuals in functioning as a member of society. Secular ethics and religious ethics, according to al-Mawardi, as the code of conduct in conducting economic practices by the government and every member of society to uphold the principle of goodness. In the context of economic behaviour, the world ethics (adab al-dunya) and the religious ethics (adab al-din) became guidelines for economic actors in conducting business activities including other forms of cooperation or other muamalah practice. |
| Keywords: | Philosophy of economics, behavioral economics, ethics, religion, Islamic Economic |
| JEL: | B31 B41 D01 D1 D6 H1 H5 N01 N25 N3 N35 |
| Date: | 2017–11–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:84488&r=hpe |
| By: | Richard S.J. Tol (Department of Economics, University of Sussex; Department of Spatial Economics, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam; Institute for Environmental Studies, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam; Tinbergen Institute, Amsterdam; CESifo, Munich) |
| Abstract: | The paper presents the professor-student network of Nobel laureates in economics. 72 of the 77 Nobelists belong to one family tree. The remaining 5 belong to 3 separate trees. There are 350 men in the graph, and 4 women. Karl Knies is the central-most professor, followed by Wassily Leontief. Harvard is the central-most university, followed by Chicago and Berlin. Most candidates for the Nobel prize belong to the main family tree, but new trees may arise for the students of Terence Gorman and Denis Sargan. |
| Keywords: | social network; professor-student relationship; Nobel Prize |
| JEL: | A14 B20 B31 |
| Date: | 2018–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sus:susewp:0518&r=hpe |
| By: | Chia-Lin Chang (National Chung Hsing University); Michael McAleer (Asia University, University of Sydney Business School, Erasmus University Rotterdam); Wing-Keung Wong (Asia University, China Medical University Hospital, Hang Seng Management College) |
| Abstract: | This paper provides a review of some connecting literature in Decision Sciences, Economics, Finance, Business, Computing, and Big Data. We then discuss some research that is related to the six cognate disciplines. Academics could develop theoretical models and subsequent econometric and statistical models to estimate the parameters in the associated models. Moreover, they could then conduct simulations to examine whether the estimators or statistics in the new theories on estimation and hypothesis have small size and high power. Thereafter, academics and practitioners could then apply their theories to analyze interesting problems and issues in the six disciplines and other cognate areas. |
| Keywords: | Decision sciences; economics; finance; business; computing; and big data; theoretical models; econometric and statistical models; applications. |
| JEL: | A10 G00 G31 O32 |
| Date: | 2018–03–14 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:tin:wpaper:20180024&r=hpe |
| By: | Isabel Schnabel; Hyun Song Shin |
| Abstract: | Money is a social convention where one party accepts it as payment in the expectation that others will do so too. Over the ages, various forms of private money have come and gone, giving way to central bank money. The reasons for the resilience of central bank money are of particular interest given current debates about cryptocurrencies and how far they will supplant central bank money. We draw lessons from the role of public deposit banks in the 1600s, which quelled the hyper-in‡flation in Europe during the Thirty Years War (1618-1648). As the precursors of modern central banks, public deposit banks established trust in monetary exchange by making the value of money common knowledge. |
| Keywords: | Gresham's Law; debasement; common knowledge; central banks |
| JEL: | E42 E58 N13 |
| Date: | 2018–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bis:biswps:698&r=hpe |
| By: | André Gambier Campos |
| Abstract: | Desde os anos 1930, a Justiça do Trabalho (JT) desempenhou papéis de extrema relevância na resolução dos conflitos laborais no Brasil. Mas a dúvida que se coloca nos dias de hoje é se essa justiça pode (ou mesmo deve) continuar com esses papéis – ou se é possível pensar em algumas alternativas, que contem com uma participação mais ativa de organizações de representação de trabalhadores. Essa dúvida se coloca a partir da análise de um conjunto de evidências, que apontam para as dificuldades dessa justiça para conseguir apresentar soluções razoáveis para os conflitos laborais no país. Since the 1930s, Labour Justice has played very important roles in resolving labour disputes in Brazil. Nonetheless, the question that arises today is whether that justice can (or even should) continue with those roles – or whether it is possible to conceive some alternatives, which involve active participation of workers’ organizations. This doubt arises from the analysis of a set of evidences, which point to the difficulties of this justice in order to present reasonable solutions to labour conflicts. |
| Date: | 2018–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipe:ipetds:2362&r=hpe |