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Monism in modern science: The case of (micro-)economics

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  • Beckenbach, Frank

Abstract

This elaboration starts by deciphering modern science as a social subsystem being loosely coupled to the rest of society (section 2.1). Additionally, the way in which modern (monistic) economics was generated within this subsystem will be sketched (section 2.2). This will be contrasted with the views that this monism would have been eroded in recent times due to imports from other sciences into economics. Conclusions as regards the necessity as well as the mode of pluralism will be drawn from this discussion (section 2.3). Picking up the disputable complexity reductions involved in the dominating (monistic) approach in economics other ways to deal with complexity inherent in the economy will be dealt with in section 3. Here a stepwise exit from the established standard approach in economics is suggested for the microeconomic syllabus consisting in the first step of an introductory pluralistic course and in the second step of a heterodox advanced course. Conclusions and perspectives resulting from such an approach are discussed in the final section.

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  • Beckenbach, Frank, 2019. "Monism in modern science: The case of (micro-)economics," Working Paper Series Ök-49, Cusanus Hochschule für Gesellschaftsgestaltung, Institut für Ökonomie.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:cuswps:oek49
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Monism; science; microconomics; pluralism; neoclassical economics;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • A10 - General Economics and Teaching - - General Economics - - - General
    • A12 - General Economics and Teaching - - General Economics - - - Relation of Economics to Other Disciplines
    • A14 - General Economics and Teaching - - General Economics - - - Sociology of Economics
    • A20 - General Economics and Teaching - - Economic Education and Teaching of Economics - - - General
    • B20 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - History of Economic Thought since 1925 - - - General
    • B59 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - Current Heterodox Approaches - - - Other
    • D00 - Microeconomics - - General - - - General

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