Article
Research Programs, Model-building and Actor-network-theory: Reassessing the Case of the Leontief Paradox
Journal of Economic Methodology
(2004)
Abstract
Methodology of scientific research programs (MSRP), model-building and actor-network-theory (ANT) are woven together to provide a layered study of the Leontief paradox. Neil De Marchi's Lakatosian account examined the paradox within an Ohlin-Samuelson research program. A model-building approach rather highlights the ability of Leontief's input-output model to mediate between international trade theory and the world by facilitating an empirical application of the Heckscher-Ohlin Theorem. The epistemological implications of this model-building approach provide an alternative explanation of why Samuelson and other prominent economists ignored the paradox. By focusing on the network in which input-output analysis evolved, Bruno Latour's ANT further explains the response of international trade theorists.
Keywords
- Leontief paradox,
- Heckscher-Ohlin Theory,
- Research programs,
- Models as mediators,
- Actor-network-theory
Disciplines
Publication Date
2004
Publisher Statement
DOI:10.1080/1350178042000280630
Citation Information
Sharon Shewmake and Justin Bledin. "Research Programs, Model-building and Actor-network-theory: Reassessing the Case of the Leontief Paradox" Journal of Economic Methodology Vol. 11 Iss. 4 (2004) Available at: http://works.bepress.com/sharon_shewmake/10/