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on History and Philosophy of Economics |
| By: | Daniel Stockemer; Gabriela Galassi; Engi Abou-El-Kheir |
| Abstract: | In recent years, significant efforts have been made to attract more women into academia and to support their careers, with the goal of increasing their representation. Using novel data for economics and political science, collected through web-scraping the corresponding departments of the top 50 universities worldwide, we document three key findings: (i) female scholars, on average, publish less and receive fewer citations than their male counterparts; (ii) this gap is smaller at junior ranks in both disciplines; and (iii) the gap decreases in departments with a higher proportion of female scholars, particularly in political science, where female faculty representation is generally higher compared to economics. Gaps do not differ significantly by field in economics, where a substantial proportion of women are concentrated in microeconomic subfields. Overall, our results underscore a persistent publication and citation gap between men and women in both disciplines, primarily driven by full professors, while suggesting that this gap diminishes in departments with greater sex balance among faculty. |
| Keywords: | Labour markets |
| JEL: | J16 I23 A14 J71 J44 |
| Date: | 2025–05 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bca:bocawp:25-13 |
| By: | Chaplygina Irina (Department of Economics, Lomonosov Moscow State University) |
| Abstract: | The transition to the analysis of dynamic processes in the economy is characteristic of the economic science of the 20th century. At the same time, it was prepared by a number of changes of the XIX century, which took place in the economy, economic and social thought, philosophy... The article considers the process of formation of the concept of economic dynamics as a branch of science, distinguishes two definitions of dynamics - through the characteristic of the subject and the characteristic of the method, analyzes the methodological origins of the static nature of classical analysis and determines a number of prerequisites for the formation of dynamic analysis (economic progress, the successes of biology, the formation of the historical method, agnosticism). |
| Keywords: | economic statics and economic dynamics, economic thought of the XIX century, historical method, romanticism, agnosticism |
| JEL: | B10 B12 B15 B41 |
| Date: | 2025–05 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:upa:wpaper:0075 |
| By: | Daniel F. Zarama Rojas |
| Abstract: | The role of nudges is not clear in recent behavioral economics literature, while reviews call for scrutiny into the theoretical foundations from which they stem. This essay answers to that call by conceptualizing biases as part of epistemic vices and analyzing the extent to which nudges may be an adequate tool to address them. I propose a new conceptual framework for biases: virtue epistemology (VE). VE allows to associate biases with identifiable individual traits called epistemic vices, which negatively affect an individual’s capacity to judge. In this document, I discuss how a VE framework may be used for the study of cognitive biases and its possible repercussions for behavioral public policy. I advance that the different ways in which epistemic vices could lead to cognitive biases suggest that nudges are better suited to suppress the harm associated with one type of vice (obstructivist) than those brought by another (reliabilist). |
| Keywords: | nudges, biases, virtue epistemology, epistemic vices, public policy. |
| JEL: | B40 D91 D62 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ulp:sbbeta:2025-06 |
| By: | Parrinello, Sergio (University of Rome “La Sapienza”) |
| Abstract: | Recent years have seen a reinterpretation of Ricardo's numerical example on foreign trade from Sraffa's note (1930), prompting economic historians and theorists to recon-sider the scope of the example. This article seeks to clarify the revised interpretation and explain the common and distinct principles that govern the laws of comparative and absolute advantage. The condition of balanced trade in aggregated value is emphasized relative to the equations of normal prices based on this revisiting. Its special role is shown by the reformulation of Sraffa's price equations for two trading economies with-out international capital movements. It is proved that there is no additional degree of freedom for the choice of exogenous distributive variables if countries move from a state of autarky to one of free trade. |
| Keywords: | David Ricardo; comparative advantage; absolute advantage; trade balance; global economy |
| JEL: | B12 B17 F10 |
| Date: | 2025–05–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:sraffa:0072 |
| By: | Hamermesh, Daniel S. (University of Texas at Austin) |
| Abstract: | This study examines publications in three leading general economics journals from the 1960s through the 2020s, considering levels and trends in the demographics of authors, methodologies of the studies, and patterns of co-authorship. The average age of authors has increased nearly steadily; there has been a sharp increase in the fraction of female authors; the number of authors per paper has risen steadily; and there has been a pronounced shift to articles using newly generated data. All but the first of these trends have been most pronounced in the most recent decade. The study also examines the relationships among these trends. |
| Keywords: | sociology of economics, co-authors, authorship |
| JEL: | A14 |
| Date: | 2025–04 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17863 |
| By: | Olivier J Blanchard (Peterson Institute for International Economics) |
| Abstract: | This year marks the 40th anniversary of the NBER Macro Annual Conference, founded in 1986. This paper reviews the evolution of mainstream macroeconomics since then. It presents Blanchard's views, informed by a survey of a number of researchers who have made important contributions to the field. He develops two main arguments. The first is that, starting from strikingly different positions, there has been substantial convergence, in terms of methodology, architecture, and main mechanisms. On methodology: Explicit micro foundations, explicit treatment of distortions, with, at the same time, an increased willingness to deviate from rational expectations, neoclassical utility, and profit maximization. On architecture: The wide acceptance of nominal rigidities as an essential distortion, although with mixed feelings. On mechanisms: The wide nature of the shocks to both the demand and the supply side. The second argument is that this convergence has been, for the most part, good convergence, i.e., the creation of a generally accepted conceptual and analytical structure, a core to which additional distortions can be added, allowing for discussions and integration of new ideas and evidence, rather than fights about basic methodology. Not everything is right however, with too much emphasis on general equilibrium implications from the start rather than, first, on partial equilibrium analysis of the phenomenon at hand. The appendix to the paper gives a sample of the views of the members of the survey on each of these arguments. |
| Date: | 2025–05 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iie:wpaper:wp25-8 |
| By: | Bin Chen; Yingchao Xie; Ting Yang; Qin Zhou |
| Abstract: | Between 1957-1985, Chinese mathematician Loo-Keng Hua pioneered economic optimization theory through three key contributions: establishing economic stability's fundamental theorem, proving the uniqueness of equilibrium solutions in economic systems, and developing a consumption-integrated model 50 days before his death. Since 1988, Mu-Fa Chen has been working on Hua's theory. He introduced stochastics, namely Markov chains, to economic optimization theory. He updated and developed Hua's model and came up with a new model (Chen's model) which has become the starting point of a new economic optimization theory. Chen's theory can be applied to economic stability test, bankruptcy prediction, product ranking and classification, economic prediction and adjustment, economic structure optimization. Chen's theory can also provide efficient algorithms that are programmable and intelligent. {Stochastics} is the cornerstone of Chen's theory. There is no overlap between Chen's theory, and the existing mathematical economy theory and the economics developments that were awarded Nobel Prizes in Economics between 1969 and 2024. The distinguished features of Chen's theory from the existing theories are quantitative, calculable, predictable, optimizable, programmable and can be intelligent. This survey provides a theoretical overview of the newly published monograph \cite{5rw24}. Specifically, the invariant of the economic structure matrix, also known as the Chen's invariant, was first published in this survey. |
| Date: | 2025–04 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2504.19134 |
| By: | Mark Setterfield (Department of Economics, New School For Social Research, USA) |
| Abstract: | This paper discusses Victoria Chick's concepts of provisional equilibrium and long run equilibrium of action. Attention is paid to the relationship between these concepts and other strands of thinking in Post Keynesian theory, as well as the relationship of the two concepts to one another. With respect to the latter, it is argued that a long run equilibrium of action is provisional, while provisional equilibrium outcomes in a Post Keynesian system can and should be thought of as depending on a long run equilibrium of action. As such, Chick's writings can be regarded as the source of a consistent vision of both short- and long-term equilibrium in Post Keynesian theory, this vision, in turn, being consistent with her preferred open-systems ontology. |
| Keywords: | Victoria Chick, provisional equilibrium, long run equilibrium of action, uncertainty, open systems |
| JEL: | B41 E12 |
| Date: | 2025–05 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:new:wpaper:2508 |
| By: | Aurélien Goutsmedt (F.R.S.-FNRS, UCLouvain, ISPOLE, ICHEC - Brussels Management School [Bruxelles]); Francesco Sergi (LIPHA - Laboratoire Interdisciplinaire d'étude du Politique Hannah Arendt Paris-Est - UPEC UP12 - Université Paris-Est Créteil Val-de-Marne - Paris 12 - Université Gustave Eiffel, UPEC UP12 - Université Paris-Est Créteil Val-de-Marne - Paris 12); François Claveau (UdeS - Université de Sherbrooke, CIRST - Centre interuniversitaire de recherche sur la science et la technologie - UdeM - Université de Montréal - UQAM - Université du Québec à Montréal = University of Québec in Montréal); Clément Fontan (UCLouvain, ISPOLE) |
| Abstract: | This article investigates the scientization process in central banks, using the Bank of England (BoE) as a case study. Its main goal is to clarify the interactions and tensions among three dimensions of scientization: contributory, policymaking and legitimizing. To do so, we outline an ideal type of contributory scientization in central banks, whereby they become active contributors to science. The article derives empirically observable characteristics for this ideal type, regarding leadership and staff profiles, use of internal resources, composition of external networks, and publication and discursive outputs. The BoE is then contrasted to this ideal type of a central bank thoroughly involved in contributory scientization. The empirical material includes archives and interviews as well as three databases providing quantitative information from the 1970s to 2019. We find that the development of contributory scientization is strategically motivated, often generating tensions with policymaking and legitimizing dimensions. Our findings suggest that scientization in central banks is best understood as a three-dimensional, non-linear process, rather than a steamroller. |
| Abstract: | Cet article étudie le processus de scientificisation dans les banques centrales, en utilisant la Banque d'Angleterre (BoE) comme étude de cas. Il propose un idéal-type de banque centrale scientifique, qui est lié à l'idée centrale selon laquelle la scientificité d'une organisation augmente avec sa volonté de contribuer à la science pertinente. Nous dérivons de cet idéal-type des caractéristiques empiriquement observables concernant les profils des dirigeants et du personnel, l'utilisation des ressources internes, la composition des réseaux externes et les résultats des publications et des discours. La BoE est ensuite comparée à cet idéal-type d'une banque centrale entièrement scientifique. Le matériel empirique comprend des archives et des entretiens ainsi que trois bases de données fournissant des informations quantitatives de 1980 à 2019. Nous constatons que le chemin vers la scientificisation est stratégiquement motivé et varié, influencé par des facteurs tels que l'équilibre entre les impératifs de crédibilité des experts et l'information des décideurs politiques. Sur la base de cette analyse empirique, nous soulignons les multiples facettes de la dynamique du processus de scientifisation et appelons à des représentations plus nuancées dans la littérature académique. |
| Keywords: | Central bank, Scientisation, Expertise, Depoliticisation, Word embedding |
| Date: | 2025–04–22 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:hal-04267004 |
| By: | Victor de Macedo Maia; Romain A Raymondie (LAPCOS - Laboratoire d'Anthropologie et de Psychologie Cliniques, Cognitives et Sociales - UNS - Université Nice Sophia Antipolis (1965 - 2019) - UniCA - Université Côte d'Azur); Dirk D Steiner (LAPCOS - Laboratoire d'Anthropologie et de Psychologie Cliniques, Cognitives et Sociales - UNS - Université Nice Sophia Antipolis (1965 - 2019) - UniCA - Université Côte d'Azur) |
| Abstract: | Né à Bruxelles, Belgique, en 1925, Jean Stacy Adams, qui signait ses articles « J. Stacy Adams », a passé la majeure partie de sa vie aux États-Unis, où il a poursuivi ses études en psychologie après avoir servi dans la marine marchande pendant la Seconde Guerre mondiale. Un de ses doctorants, Robert Folger, a remarqué que J. S. Adams était le seul psychologue tatoué qu'il connaissait à l'époque. Pour sa formation, Adams a fréquenté différentes institutions universitaires américaines. Il a obtenu son Bachelor of Arts à l'Université du Mississippi en 1948, puis sa Master of Arts en 1955 suivi en 1957 de son doctorat en psychologie expérimentale à l'Université de Caroline du Nord à Chapel Hill. Après sa thèse, il était assistant professor à l'Université de Stanford pendant trois ans où il a collaboré avec Leon Festinger, dont la théorie de la dissonance cognitive a eu une influence majeure sur le développement de sa propre théorie de l'équité. En 1960, Adams a rejoint General Electric en tant que chercheur dans un programme social de l'entreprise, visant à développer les sciences sociales au sein de celle-ci (Miner, 2005). Pendant cette période, il a développé et testé sa théorie de l'équité, devenue l'une des principales théories pour comprendre la justice et la motivation humaine (Ryan, 2016). Après son expérience chez General Electric, Adams est retourné à l'Université de Caroline du Nord, où il a poursuivi sa carrière académique. Il a continué à travailler sur le perfectionnement de sa théorie de l'équité (Adams & Freedman, 1976), ainsi que sur d'autres sujets liés aux rôles organisationnels qui permettent d'obtenir des informations auprès d'acteurs extérieurs à l'organisation (Miner, 2005). En outre, Adams a dirigé les thèses de Robert Folger (connu pour ses contributions à la justice organisationnelle), Dennis Organ (pionnier dans l'étude des comportements de citoyenneté organisationnelle) et Robert Miles (reconnu dans les domaines de la transformation organisationnelle et du leadership exécutif) et a participé à l'encadrement de la thèse de Allan Lind (reconnu dans le domaine de la justice organisationnelle). J. Stacy Adams est décédé en 1984 à l'âge de 59 ans. DE LA PSYCHOLOGIE SOCIALE A LA PSYCHOLOGIE DES ORGANISATIONSAu début de sa carrière à l'Université de Stanford, Adams travaillaient principalement sur des thématiques de la psychologie sociale qui n'étaient pas directement liées à la psychologie des organisations. Initialement, il a mené des recherches sur les thèmes du renforcement social (Adams & Hoffman, 1960 ; Maccoby et al., 1961), de la dissonance cognitive (Adams, 1961) et de l'autorité (Adams & Romney, 1959). Parmi ces recherches, seul son travail sur l'analyse fonctionnelle de l'autorité a été associé au contexte organisationnel, notamment au leadership. Cependant, bien que ce modèle ait été brièvement mentionné dans certains manuels de référence sur le leadership (e.g., Bass & Bass, 2008), il n'a généralement pas été repris dans la littérature. C'est en intégrant la société General Electric en 1960 que le parcours d'Adams en tant que psychologue social et des organisations a réellement commencé. Dans un premier temps, et en lien avec ses travaux sur la dissonance cognitive, il s'est intéressé à l'équité dans les échanges sociaux, un sujet qui a occupé la majeure partie de sa carrière. Ces travaux ont principalement été menés dans le cadre de son poste de chercheur au sein de General Electric, où il a développé et testé la théorie de l'équité (Adams, 1963a, b 1965 ; Adams & Jacobsen 1964 ; Adams & Rosenbaum, 1962). Ses recherches dans ce domaine se sont poursuivies jusqu'aux années 1970 dans l'Université de Caroline du Nord (Adams & Freedman, 1976). Parallèlement, Adams s'est intéressé à d'autres thématiques, notamment aux rôles organisationnels qui s'étendent au-delà des frontières (rôle transfrontalier) de la structure (boundary positions 1 ), et sur lesquels il a publié quelques articles empiriques. D'une part, il a étudié les facteurs qui influencent la sévérité des mesures disciplinaires prises à l'encontre des employés transgressant les normes éthiques envers leur supérieur hiérarchique (Rosen & Adams, 1974). D'autre part, il a analysé les exigences contradictoires auxquelles sont confrontés les employés occupant des rôles transfrontaliers (Frey & Adams , 1972 ; Wall & Adams, 1974). Cependant, à l'instar de ses travaux en psychologie sociale, ce n'est pas dans ce domaine qu'Adams a apporté le plus de contributions. En effet, en tant que chercheur, Adams est principalement reconnu pour ses travaux sur la théorie de l'équité. Il est raisonnable d'affirmer que peu de théories en psychologie sont associées au nom de leurs auteurs comme c'est le cas pour la théorie de l'équité d'Adams. Toutefois, comme Adams l'a lui-même reconnu, la théorie de l'équité n'était pas une nouvelle théorie (Adams, 1965), mais plutôt des propositions articulées à partir de théories déjà existantes. |
| Keywords: | Equité, Management |
| Date: | 2024–08–29 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:hal-05020843 |
| By: | Zwetelina Iliewa; Elisabeth Kempf; Oliver Spalt |
| Abstract: | We examine nonpecuniary preferences across a broad set of corporate actions using a representative sample of the U.S. population. Our core findings, based on largescale online surveys, are that (i) self-reported nonpecuniary concerns are large both for stock market investors and non-investors; (ii) concerns about the treatment of workers and CEO pay rank highest - higher than concerns about workforce diversity and fossil energy usage; (iii) moral universalism emerges as an important driver of nonpecuniary preferences. Combined, our findings provide new evidence on the importance of moral concerns as a key determinant of nonpecuniary preferences over corporate actions. |
| Keywords: | corporate social responsibility, nonpecuniary preferences, moral universalism. |
| JEL: | G30 G40 D30 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_11854 |
| By: | Hua, Tony |
| Abstract: | People often avoid information to evade social obligations and justify selfish behavior. However, such behavior unfolds within a social context, where beliefs about others’ actions shape individual choices. This study examines how social expectations, shaped by perceived norms and decision framing, influence individuals’ willingness to avoid information. In a modified moral wiggle-room game, participants first predict how often others acquired information, then receive feedback about others’ information-seeking behavior before making their own decision as the dictator. The experiment manipulates (1) the feedback on norms participants receive, reflecting varying rates of information avoidance, and (2) whether they know in advance that they will be making the decision themselves, thereby inducing either a \textit{self-referential} or \textit{socially} framed perspective. Individuals were more likely to acquire information when exposed to norms favoring transparency, with pessimistic participants—those who believed ignorance was common—responding most strongly. Optimistic individuals showed little adjustment. Contrary to expectations, there was little evidence that participants distorted their beliefs about others to justify selfish behavior. However, a notable gender difference emerged: female participants, when primed with self-referential framing, were significantly less responsive to normative cues than males. Finally, an exploratory comparison with previous experiments suggests that belief elicitation itself, even in the absence of normative cues, significantly reduces information avoidance, highlighting a promising and scalable intervention for promoting transparency. |
| Keywords: | information avoidance; moral wiggle-room; social norms; social appropriateness; experiment |
| JEL: | C72 C91 D8 D83 |
| Date: | 2025–04–01 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:124363 |
| By: | Thaler, Balázs |
| Abstract: | This study investigates the effectiveness of the National Hungarian Economic Society (NHES) in representing agricultural interests in late 19th-century Hungary. As Hungary's leading agricultural interest group, the NHES shifted its focus in 1879 toward representing sectoral interests, responding to increased international competition and tensions in international trade. By analysing parliamentary records and NHES publications, the study found that while the NHES actively lobbied for agricultural interests, it often struggled to achieve its objectives, particularly in high-profile cases. External factors, such as strong Austrian interests and limited state capacity of Hungary, contributed to these challenges. However, internal issues also hindered the organisation’s capacity for collective action. An analysis of NHES membership data revealed the organisation likely struggled to integrate a diverse membership, which included landholders and non-farmers with varied interests. Disproportionate representation, weak norm enforcement and favouritism in lobbying efforts further weakened the cohesion of the organisation. The NHES lacked a comprehensive strategy to counter free rider issues and foster greater cooperation among members. Consequently, both external constraints and internal fragmentation weakened the NHES’ ability to effectively represent the Hungarian agricultural sector. |
| JEL: | Q10 |
| Date: | 2025–02 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:127236 |
| By: | Aspromourgos, Tony (School of Economics, University of Sydney) |
| Abstract: | This article provides transcriptions of two manuscripts of William Petty (1623–1687), together with a substantial editorial apparatus. The first manuscript analyses the feasibility of doubling the population of England plus Ireland and Scotland in 25 years; the second considers how a uniform taxation might be imposed upon consumption. Elements of particular interest in the manuscripts are: an empirical estimation of economic surplus for England, Ireland and Scotland taken together; the conceptualization of value-added taxation as an instrument for taxing consumption; and an argument for limits to rational quantification. |
| Keywords: | economic surplus; population growth; value-added taxation; quantification |
| JEL: | B11 |
| Date: | 2025–04–25 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:sraffa:0071 |