Article
Economic Writing on the Pressing Problems of the Day: The Roles of Moral Intuition and Methodological Confusion
La Revue de Philosophie Economique/Review of Economic Philosophy
(2010)
Abstract
Economists are often called on to help address pressing problems of the day, yet many economists are uncomfortable about disclosing the values that they bring to this work. This essay explores how an inadequate understanding of the role of methodology, as related to ethics and human emotions of concern, underlies this reluctance and compromises the quality of economic advice. The tension between caring about the problems, on the one hand, and writing within the existing culture of the discipline, on the other, are illustrated with examples from U.S. policymaking, behavioral economics, and the economics of climate change and global poverty. Potential steps towards a more responsible, "strongly objective," and policy-useful economics are discussed.
Keywords
- economics,
- ethics,
- policy,
- methodology,
- climate change,
- financial crisis,
- poverty,
- inequality,
- feminist economics
Disciplines
Publication Date
December, 2010
Citation Information
Julie A. Nelson. "Economic Writing on the Pressing Problems of the Day: The Roles of Moral Intuition and Methodological Confusion" La Revue de Philosophie Economique/Review of Economic Philosophy Vol. 11 Iss. 2 (2010) Available at: http://works.bepress.com/julie_nelson1/3/
Revision of Global Development Working Paper No. 09-03, published April 2009 (the file for which is attached).
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