Symposium on Dani Rodrik’s Economics Rules

The latest issue of the Journal of Economic Methodology (2018, 25/3) is a special issue on Dani Rodrik's Economic Rules. It consists of the following articles: Philosophy of Economics Rules: introduction to the symposium - N. Emrah Aydinonat. doi: 10.1080/1350178X.2018.1503143 Pre-print available on ResearchGate. Rights and wrongs of economic modelling: refining Rodrik - Uskali Mäki. Available … Continue reading Symposium on Dani Rodrik’s Economics Rules →

Philosophy of Economics Rules: introduction to the symposium

ABSTRACT: Economists have long been criticized for their use of highly idealized models. In Economics rules: Why economics works, when it fails, and how to tell the difference [Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2015] Dani Rodrik responds to this criticism by offering an account of models that emphasizes the diversity of models in economics. Rodrik's account presents … Continue reading Philosophy of Economics Rules: introduction to the symposium →

Introduction to The Invisible Hand in Economics (Routledge, 2008)

This is the Introduction to The Invisible Hand in Economics: How Economists Explain Unintended Social Consequences (Routledge, 2008). If you prefer to read the PDF version, it is available on ResearchGate. Everyone is familiar with the (aesthetically) unpleasant walking-paths on public green fields. Usually, around these fields there are constructed paths for the service … Continue reading Introduction to The Invisible Hand in Economics (Routledge, 2008) →

Understanding with theoretical models

ABSTRACT. This paper discusses the epistemic import of highly abstract and simplified theoretical models using Thomas Schelling's checkerboard model as an example. We argue that the epistemic contribution of theoretical models can be better understood in the context of a cluster of models relevant to the explanatory task at hand. The central claim of the … Continue reading Understanding with theoretical models →

The diversity of models as a means to better explanations in economics

ABSTRACT. In Economics Rules, Rodrik [(2015). Economics rules: Why economics works, when it fails, and how to tell the difference. Oxford: Oxford University Press] argues that what makes economics powerful despite the limitations of each and every model is its diversity of models. Rodrik suggests that the diversity of models in economics improves its explanatory capacities, but … Continue reading The diversity of models as a means to better explanations in economics →