School of Economic Thought
A School of Economic Thought is a school of thought for economic theory.
- Example(s):
- Counter-Example(s):
- See: History of Economic Thought, Economist, Mercantilist, Physiocrats.
References
2014
- (Wikipedia, 2014) ⇒ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schools_of_economic_thought Retrieved:2014-10-5.
- Schools of economic thought describes the variety of approaches in the history of economic thought noteworthy enough to be described as a school of thought. While economists do not always fit into particular schools, particularly in modern times, classifying economists into schools of thought is common. Economic thought may be roughly divided into three phases: premodern (Greco-Roman, Indian, Persian, Islamic, and Imperial Chinese), early modern (mercantilist, physiocrats) and modern (beginning with Adam Smith and classical economics in the late 18th century). Systematic economic theory has been developed mainly since the beginning of what is termed the modern era.
Currently, the great majority of economists follow an approach referred to as mainstream economics (sometimes called 'orthodox economics'). Within the mainstream in the United States, distinctions can be made between the Saltwater school (associated with Berkeley, Harvard, MIT, Pennsylvania, Princeton, and Yale), and the more laissez-faire ideas of the Freshwater school (represented by the Chicago school of economics, Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Rochester and the University of Minnesota). Both of these schools of thought are associated with the neoclassical synthesis.
Some influential approaches of the past, such as the historical school of economics and institutional economics, have become defunct or have declined in influence, and are now considered heterodox approaches. Recent heterodox developments include feminist, Green economics, Post-autistic economics, and Thermoeconomics. Heterodox approaches often embody criticisms of the "mainstream". For instance:
- Feminist economics criticizes the valuation of labor and argues female labor is systemically undervalued
- Green economics criticizes externalized and intangible status of ecosystems and argues to bring them within the tangible measured capital asset model as natural capital.
- Post-autistic economics criticizes the focus on formal models at the expense of observation and values, arguing for a return to the moral philosophy in which Adam Smith originally founded this human science.
- It may be accordingly easier to describe these as variants of mainstream economic thought rather than as schools in themselves.
- Schools of economic thought describes the variety of approaches in the history of economic thought noteworthy enough to be described as a school of thought. While economists do not always fit into particular schools, particularly in modern times, classifying economists into schools of thought is common. Economic thought may be roughly divided into three phases: premodern (Greco-Roman, Indian, Persian, Islamic, and Imperial Chinese), early modern (mercantilist, physiocrats) and modern (beginning with Adam Smith and classical economics in the late 18th century). Systematic economic theory has been developed mainly since the beginning of what is termed the modern era.
- (Chang, 2014) ⇒ Ha-Joon Chang. (2014). “Economics: The User's Guide." Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN:9781620408131