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A Review of Kuhnian and Lakatosian “Explanations” in Economics

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  • Drakopoulos, Stavros A.
  • Karayiannis, Anastassios

Abstract

In the last few decades the influence on economics of the ideas of T. Kuhn and I. Lakatos was considerable. The increasing use of terms like “paradigms” and “scientific research programmes” in almost every field of economics, is indicative of the influence of these two philosophers. Furthermore, the introduction of the ideas of Kuhn and Lakatos in economics gave the stimulus for work on the nature of growth of economic knowledge. The paper starts by presenting the main influence of T. Kuhn on theories concerned with the evolution of economic theory. It continues with a review of the main criticisms regarding the appropriateness and applicability of Kuhnian ideas for economics. The same approach is followed in the case of I. Lakatos. After a classification and discussion of the main findings, the paper attempts to offer an interpretation of the general impact of these two philosophers science on ideas relating to the development of economic theories.

Suggested Citation

  • Drakopoulos, Stavros A. & Karayiannis, Anastassios, 2005. "A Review of Kuhnian and Lakatosian “Explanations” in Economics," MPRA Paper 16624, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:16624
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    2. Heise, Arne & Thieme, Sebastian, 2015. "What happened to heterodox economics in Germany after the 1970s," ZÖSS-Discussion Papers 49, University of Hamburg, Centre for Economic and Sociological Studies (CESS/ZÖSS).
    3. Drakopoulos, Stavros A., 2009. "Book Review of “On the Role of Paradigms in Finance” (Ardalan, 2008)," MPRA Paper 98989, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Development of economics; Economic Methodology; Kuhn; Lakatos;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • B0 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - General
    • A1 - General Economics and Teaching - - General Economics

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