Globalisation won’t do away with variations in capitalism

Different capitalisms aren't gravitating towards one only type: permanent divergence is possible, writes Geoffrey M. Hodgso

How Veblenian Evolutionary Thinking Transcends Methodological Individualism and Methodological Collectivism

The Veblenian evolutionary approach adopts some key philosophical and other principles from Darwinism. Among these is an insistence that every event has a cause. Hence, in particular, human intentionality is caused. This does not mean the neglect of human intentionality but the acceptance that it is caused, even if explanations of such causes are elusive. This essay explores the application of these and other Darwinian principles to economics by Veblen, more than a hundred years ago. It shows that these principles are incompatible with both methodological individualism and methodological collectivism, as conventionally defined.L’approche évolutionniste veblennienne adopte certains des principes clés - philosophiques et autres - du darwinisme. Parmi ceux-ci on trouve l’insistance sur le fait que chaque événement a une cause. L’intentionnalité humaine, notamment, est actionnée par une cause. Ceci ne signifie pas un manque d’attention envers l’intentionnalité humaine, mais l’acceptation de ce qu’elle résulte d’une cause, même si les explications de telles causes demeurent vagues. Cet essai explore l’application à l’économie de ces principes, ainsi que d’autres principes darwiniens, par Veblen, il y a plus de cent ans, et montre que ces principes sont incompatibles à la fois avec l’individualisme méthodologique et avec le collectivisme méthodologique tels qu’ils sont conventionnellement définis

Prospects for institutional research

Prospects for institutional researc

Instituciones, recesiones y recuperación en las economías en transición

This article analyses the 1989-2005 economic growth in the transitional economies in Europe and Central Asia, and signals factors that help to explain the differences in outcome. An econometric analysis finds prominent indices of property rights, corruption, economic freedom, tax incidence and civil liberties as statistically insignificant in this regard. Statistically significant variables include the degree of ethnic fractionalization and an index of democracy, both of which were negatively correlated with GDP growth. Overall, the analysis here shows the need for effective national institutions that can enforce legal and general rules of the economic game, reap positive benefits for democracy, and overcome the negative economic legacy of ethnic divisions.institutions, recessions, transitional economies, ethnic fractionalization, index of democracy

¿Cómo llegó la economía a semejante situación?

In this short essay Hodgson denounces the superficiality in the teaching of economics and agrees with the student protests which have urged deep academic reforms. He also censures the absence of plurality and tolerance in teaching methods and argues that excessive mathematical formulation, together with the commercialization of knowledge and research have contributed to narrowing the approach of economics. He proposes the study of philosophy, economic history, history of ideas, as well as relevant social institutions and the practical conditions of social politics, should be as important as the academic requirement of knowledge of mathematics.Teaching of economics, plurality, tolerance, academic project

¿Los experimentos pueden falsear la teoría de la utilidad esperada?

Some recent articles debate the implications of the results of experimental economics. It is claimed by some that these results challenge the assumptions of expected utility theory. Others deny this. Both sides presume that the assumptions of rationality or expected utility-maximization are potentially falsifiable by empirical tests. This article contests this assumption. Building on previous work in economic methodology, it is argued that non-falsifiable assumptions, such as the standard rationality postulates, are potentially universal. Hence they can embrace any empirical phenomenon. That is both their strength and their weakness. The article concludes that the debate among experimental economists can only proceed if both sides accept the non-falsifiability of key propositions under dispute. That done, the protagonists can turn to the more pertinent questions such as the criteria for choosing theories. In particular, experimental economics may have a role in suggesting more narrow and context-specific behavioural assumptions for economic theory.rationality, experimental economics, falsification, evolutionary psychology

La ubicuidad de los hábitos y las reglas

Under what circumstances is it necessary or convenient for an agent to rely on habits and rules? This paper focuses on the types of decision situation giving rise to their use. Even optimisation requires the development of rules, and for this reason mainstream economics cannot legitimately ignore these questions. It argues that habits and rules are ubiquitous in human activity, presents a new taxonomy and analyses seven types of decision situations classified according to the type of information problem involved. Neither neoclassical nor behavioural economics can provide a complete account of the bases of habits or rules in these cases.habits, rules, learning, communication, cognition, uncertainty

Varieties of Capitalism : Some Philosophical and Historical Considerations

This is a pre-copyedited, author-produced version of an article accepted for publication in Cambridge Journal of Economics following peer review. The version of record: Goeffry Hodgson, “Varieties of Capitalism: Some Philosophical and Historical Considerations”, Cambridge Journal of Economics, Vol. 40 (3): 941-960, January 2016. is available online at: https://academic.oup.com/cje/article-lookup/doi/10.1093/cje/bev083.The literature on varieties of capitalism has stimulated some authors to challenge notions of ‘essentialism’ and even the concept of capitalism itself. In this essay it is argued that the existence of varieties of capitalism does not rule out the need for, or possibility of, specification or definition of that type. Accordingly, ‘capitalism’ is still a viable term. The critique of ‘essentialism’ is also countered, after clarifying its meaning. In particular, it is pointed out that a suitably-defined ‘essentialism’ does not imply some kind of ontological or explanatory reductionism – ‘economic’ or otherwise. But while adopting what are basically Aristotelian arguments about essences, we need to reject Aristotle’s auxiliary notion that variety generally results from temporary deviations from a representative type or trend. Furthermore, capitalism is a historically specific and relatively recent system: we need to develop a classificatory definition of that system that demarcates it from other past or possible social formations.Peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio