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The Achievements of the Cliometric School

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  • McCloskey, Donald N.

Abstract

The members of the Association must be sick to death of “The Achievements of the Cliometric School.†The health of a field, it is said, is inversely proportional to the percentage of essays on method, by which standard cliometrics itself was sick to death in childhood and is only just now recovering. The few essays on method appearing nowadays are usually commissioned, lack revolutionary fervor, and have become as predictable as sportswriting: gee whiz, how extraordinary has been the growth of cliometrics; cliometrics, of course, is gravely limited by its attachment to neoclassical economics; do not be alarmed by counterfactuals. Essays on method, like articles on the sportspage, irritate the players (nobody loves a critic), flatter the owners (in whose pay he sometimes labors), and hearten the loyal fen (with the written equivalent of the chant “We're number one†). They foreshadow the post-season banquets and their awards: Most Valuable Scholar, Best Book Reviewer (Golden Glove), or, in another mode, Best Historian in a Supporting Role, and Farce of the Year.

Suggested Citation

  • McCloskey, Donald N., 1978. "The Achievements of the Cliometric School," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 38(1), pages 13-28, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:jechis:v:38:y:1978:i:01:p:13-28_08
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Philippe Mongin, 2018. "A game-theoretic analysis of the Waterloo campaign and some comments on the analytic narrative project," Cliometrica, Springer;Cliometric Society (Association Francaise de Cliométrie), vol. 12(3), pages 451-480, September.
    2. David Greasley & Les Oxley, 2010. "Clio And The Economist: Making Historians Count," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(5), pages 755-774, December.
    3. Lino Wehrheim, 2019. "Economic history goes digital: topic modeling the Journal of Economic History," Cliometrica, Springer;Cliometric Society (Association Francaise de Cliométrie), vol. 13(1), pages 83-125, January.
    4. Fenoaltea, Stefano, 2018. "Spleen: the failures of the cliometric school," MPRA Paper 90210, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    5. Crafts, Nicholas, 1999. "Quantitative economic history," Economic History Working Papers 22390, London School of Economics and Political Science, Department of Economic History.
    6. Claude Diebolt & Michael Haupert, 2021. "The Role of Cliometrics in History and Economics," Working Papers of BETA 2021-26, Bureau d'Economie Théorique et Appliquée, UDS, Strasbourg.
    7. Crafts, Nicholas, 2000. "Development history," Economic History Working Papers 22384, London School of Economics and Political Science, Department of Economic History.
    8. Pencho Penchev, 2017. "Of the Essence and Meaning of Economic History," Proceedings of the Centre for Economic History Research, Centre for Economic History Research, vol. 2, pages 9-34, November.
    9. Javier Mejía, 2015. "The Evolution of Economic History since 1950: From Cliometrics to Cliodynamics (La evolución de la historia económica desde 1950: de cliometría hasta cliodinámica)," Tiempo y Economía, Universidad de Bogotá Jorge Tadeo Lozano, vol. 2(2), pages 79, December.
    10. Vahabi, Mehrdad, 1998. "Une analyse cliometrique du régionalisme européen [A Cliometric Analysis of the European Regionalism]," MPRA Paper 80043, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised Dec 1998.
    11. Andrew Seltzer & Martin Shanahan & Claire Wright, 2022. "The Rise and Fall and Rise (?) of Economic History in Australia," CEH Discussion Papers 05, Centre for Economic History, Research School of Economics, Australian National University.
    12. Monnet, Eric, 2019. "Interest rates," CEPR Discussion Papers 13896, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    13. Claude Diebolt & Michael Haupert, 2018. "A cliometric counterfactual: what if there had been neither Fogel nor North?," Cliometrica, Springer;Cliometric Society (Association Francaise de Cliométrie), vol. 12(3), pages 407-434, September.
    14. Dupré, Ruth & Huberman, Michael, 2000. "L’influence de la science économique sur les historiens : une analyse de deux revues canadiennes d’histoire (1970-1996)," L'Actualité Economique, Société Canadienne de Science Economique, vol. 76(1), pages 159-170, mars.
    15. David Mitch, 2010. "Chicago and Economic History," Chapters, in: Ross B. Emmett (ed.), The Elgar Companion to the Chicago School of Economics, chapter 8, Edward Elgar Publishing.

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