| Abstract: |
This essay defines economics as a social science characterized by a particular
and evolving way of thinking, and explores its scope and limitations. It is
argued that economics has a strong normative nature and that it is ideological
by construction. Thus, economics is better suited to improve our understanding
of economic phenomena, contribute to solve better current problems and
generate a sufficiently large and lasting consensus, than to prove anything
for sure. Some reasons for persistent differences among economists are
trade-offs, problems measuring economic variables and deficient definitions
for key concepts. Thus, economics education should seek constructing
explicitly the economics way of thinking and maintaining focus on optimal
policy intervention, while its practice should aim at clarity, transparency,
tractability, consistency, replicability, applicability, relevance and
responsibility. |