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HES PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS: WHAT’S WRONG WITH ECONOMICS?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 March 2012

Abstract

The piece begins with the proposition that the economic perspective on human activity must reflect the fact that human beings transact in a world defined for the actors by social norms. An analysis of the crisis of 2008 is offered as a demonstration of the value of adopting such a broader perspective. Part II offers an historical model based on Adam Smith’s Moral Philosophy of such a broader analysis. The piece closes with the case that the history of ideas offers alternative perspectives on the questions we explore in economics today, and thus can serve as a valuable resource for constructive skepticism of the current discourse.

Type
Research Articles
Copyright
Copyright © The History of Economics Society 2012

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