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on History and Philosophy of Economics |
| By: | Thomas I. Palley |
| Abstract: | Keynes' General Theory was a massive step forward relative to classical economics, but it was also a step backward in its denial of the conflictual nature of capitalism. There is need to understand Keynes' technical contributions regarding the workings of monetary economies, but also need to understand the flaws within his thinking and the consequences thereof. Keynes made a fundamental contribution elucidating the mechanism of effective demand, and he also has claim to be the preeminent monetary theorist. However, owing to his denial of conflict, he had a flawed view of capitalism which is why establishment Keynesianism struggles to explain contemporary stagnation. That flawed view also undermines the case for Social Democracy. Contrary to conventional wisdom, his view of capitalism is supportive of Neoliberalism and Keynes can be viewed as a compassionate (Third Way) Neoliberal. |
| Keywords: | Keynes, The general theory, conflict, capitalism, stagnation, bastard Keynesians |
| JEL: | B2 B22 B3 B31 E00 P1 |
| Date: | 2023 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:imk:fmmpap:88-2023&r= |
| By: | Annette Godart-van der Kroon (President Ludwig von Mises Institute Europe) |
| Abstract: | On the occasion of Adam Smiths 300th birthday, commemorated in 2023, this contribution discusses some of his positions and their effects, particularly with regard to the present day, and addresses issues such as the so-called "Adam Smith problem". After an outline of Smith's central positions on liberalism, his relationship to some of his contemporary thinkers will be discussed. An assessment is made of the connection between real or apparent contradictions between Smiths major works, The Theory of Moral Sentiments and Wealth of Nations (the Adam Smith Problem), which is followed by some reflections on the famous "invisible hand". Finally, assessments of Smiths theory by Friedrich A. von Hayek and Ludwig von Mises are presented and an evaluation of his theory from todays perspective is made on the basis of the various reactions to his work. |
| Keywords: | Liberalism, the state, mercantilism, invisible hand, the Adam Smith Problem |
| Date: | 2024–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bwu:schdps:sdp24001&r= |
| By: | Sebastian Gechert; Bianka Mey; Matej Opatrny; Tomas Havranek; T.D. Stanley; Pedro R.D. Bom; Hristos Doucouliagos; Philipp Heimberger; Zuzana Irsova; Heiko J. Rachinger |
| Abstract: | Over the past several decades, meta-analysis has emerged as a widely accepted tool to understand economics research. Meta-analyses often challenge the established conventional wisdom of their respective fields. We systematically review a wide range of influential meta-analyses in economics and compare them to 'conventional wisdom.' After correcting for observable biases, the empirical economic effects are typically much closer to zero and sometimes switch signs. Typically, the relative reduction in effect sizes is 45-60%. |
| Keywords: | meta-analysis, systematic review, conventional wisdom |
| JEL: | A14 B40 C10 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:imk:fmmpap:95-2024&r= |
| By: | Claudius Graebner Radkowitsch (Institute for Comprehensive Analysis of the Economy, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Austria; Department of Pluralist Economics, Europa-University Flensburg, Germany); Jakob Kapeller (Institute for Comprehensive Analysis of the Economy, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Austria; Institute for Socio-Economics, University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany) |
| Abstract: | At its core, the discussion on the micro–macro link in heterodox economics is concerned with the correct treatment of aggregates and aggregation in social theory. In this chapter we survey heterodox approaches to the micro-macro link with a focus on shared understandings and convictions that apply across different schools of thought. In addition, we illuminate typical fallacies related to the treatment of aggregation and aggregates as well as the philosophical underpinnings of heterodox ontology to better understand conceptual differences between heterodox economics and competing approaches. Given that economics faces myriad problems of aggregation—as in the case of market interaction, macroeconomic aggregates, or interpersonal coordination and contracting—the quest to provide suitable conceptual tools and philosophical foundations to adequately address aggregates and aggregation should be of special interest to economists of different persuasions. |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ico:wpaper:153&r= |
| By: | Jetter, Michael (University of Western Australia) |
| Abstract: | Is humanity's circle of moral concern expanding, as often claimed? I explore frequencies of morally universal language in 15m book publications in American English, British English, French, Spanish, German, and Italian from 1800-2000. In each language, morally universal terminology diminished substantially. I then test two prominent hypotheses predicting moral universalism: reason and religion. Reason-based terminology correlates positively with morally universal and morally communal terminology, explaining seemingly contradictory observations of the 20th century. In contrast, communal terminology sub-sides when religious terminology becomes more frequent. These empirical patterns cast doubt on prominent claims of moral universalism expanding. |
| Keywords: | Expanding Circle, moral universalism, moral expansiveness, reason, religion |
| JEL: | N30 Z12 Z13 |
| Date: | 2024–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16947&r= |
| By: | Daniel Lu |
| Abstract: | This paper is an original attempt to understand the foundations of economic reasoning. It endeavors to rigorously define the relationship between subjective interpretations and objective valuations of such interpretations in the context of theoretical economics. This analysis is substantially expanded through a dynamic approach, where the truth of a valuation results in an updated interpretation or changes in the agent's subjective belief regarding the effectiveness of the selected action as well as the objective reality of the effectiveness of all other possible actions (i.e. consequence realization). Complications arise when the economic agent is presented with a set of actions that render ambiguous preference, or when the effectiveness of an action cannot be perceived upon its selection, thereby necessitating a different theory of choice and consequence realization. |
| Date: | 2024–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2404.16061&r= |
| By: | Barron, Kai; Fries, Tilman |
| Abstract: | We study how one person may shape the way another person interprets objective information. They do this by proposing a sense-making explanation (or narrative). Using a theory-driven experiment, we investigate the mechanics of such narrative persuasion. Our results reveal several insights. First, narratives are persuasive: We find that they systematically shift beliefs. Second, narrative fit (coherence with the facts) is a key determinant of persuasiveness. Third, this fit-heuristic is anticipated by narrative-senders, who systematically tailor their narratives to the facts. Fourth, the features of a competing narrative predictably influence both narrative construction and adoption. |
| Keywords: | Narratives, beliefs, explanations, mental models, experiment, financial advice |
| JEL: | D83 G40 G50 C90 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:wzbeoc:295066&r= |
| By: | Meinhard Knoche |
| Abstract: | Die folgende Arbeit ist Teil einer umfassenden Bestandsaufnahme der Geschichte des ifo Instituts, die sich von den bis in die frühen 1940er Jahre hineinreichenden Wurzeln des Instituts bis zum Jahr 2017 erstreckt, als der Autor dieser Zeilen aus dem ifo-Vorstand in den Ruhestand wechselte. Sie entstand im Rahmen eines vom ifo Institut geförderten Projekts und in Zusammenarbeit mit dem Institut für Zeitgeschichte. Dort befasst sich Angela Müller in einer vom IfZ-Vizepräsidenten Prof. Magnus Brechtken betreuten Dissertation mit dem Werdegang Karl Maria Hettlages. Ich danke Angela Müller sehr für den offenen und konstruktiven Austausch und wünsche ihr viel Erfolg bei der Bewältigung ihres ambitionierten Projekts. Bei Markus Brechtken bedanke ich mich für wertvolle Hinweise. |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ifowps:_410&r= |
| By: | Lanot, Gauthier (Department of Economics, Umeå University); Tribe, Keith (University of Jyväskylä) |
| Abstract: | During the 1790s Britain experienced a series of poor harvests which, given an expanding population and wartime disruption to the European grain trade, resulted in sudden and rapid increases in the domestic price of wheat. In modern discussion of Corn and Poor Laws the severity of these fluctuations has been obscured by the use of annual average grain prices, despite weekly county prices being available from 1771 as published in the London Gazette. We highlight the uncertainties of grain prices during the period 1794-96, drawing upon extensive contemporary discussion published in the Annals of Agriculture of the problems arising from rapid fluctuations in the price of wheat. Our purpose is to demonstrate that the tropes usually today associated with the Corn and Poor Laws – pauperism, a clash between merchant, manufacturing and landlord interests, population and impoverishment – are absent from discussion during this period. A doctrinaire “political economy” would develop in the early 1800s, but did not yet exist. Policy argument drew upon casuistic reasoning from circumstance and past experience. We also show that this approach undermines any idea that Edmund Burke’s Thoughts and Details on Scarcity is in some way connected to “political economy”. |
| Keywords: | Corn Laws; grain prices; London Gazette; Annals of Agriculture; political economy; dearth |
| JEL: | B11 B12 P00 |
| Date: | 2024–05–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:umnees:1025&r= |
| By: | Adrien Jean-Guy Passant (ISTEC - Institut supérieur des Sciences, Techniques et Economie Commerciales - ISTEC) |
| Abstract: | Although entrepreneurship is presently one of the core elements of business schools' curricula worldwide, little is known about the emergence and evolution of this type of training outside the U.S. A. To bridge this gap, this paper examines entrepreneurship training in France drawing on the case of ESCP, the oldest business school in the world. Its contribution is threefold. First, it details the determining role of contextual factors on the emergence and evolution of entrepreneurship instruction within a business school. Second, it illustrates that there is no automatic correspondence between the intention or the content of entrepreneurship courses and their results, which questions the nature of entrepreneurship instruction. Third, it examines the role of business school students in defining the boundaries between business education and entrepreneurial education. |
| Keywords: | Entrepreneurship instruction, Entrepreneurship education, Entrepreneurial diversification, Business schools |
| Date: | 2024–01–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:hal-04553017&r= |