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Who Came First: Politicians or Academic Economists?

Author

Listed:
  • Johan Lonnroth

Abstract

In this text an analysis is presented concerning who were first to form and accept new macroeconomic policy ideas in Sweden: economic politicians or professional economists. Those ideas were later to be accepted in international mainstream economics. Four paradigmatic shifts, all of them connected to economic - unemployment and/or inflation - crises, are studied: 1) The so called New Economics in the 1930s; 2) the forming of the Rehn & Meidner model and its implementation in the 1940s to 1960s; 3) the gradual shift from Keynesianism to monetarism and norm based theory during the last three decades of the 20th century; 4) the effects on economic thinking of the crisis in 2008/09. The result is that in cases 1, 2 and 4 initiatives to change policies rather came from politicians than from academic professional economists. In case 3 the result is more uncertain.

Suggested Citation

  • Johan Lonnroth, 2013. "Who Came First: Politicians or Academic Economists?," HISTORY OF ECONOMIC THOUGHT AND POLICY, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 2013(1), pages 121-140.
    • Handle: RePEc:fan:spespe:v:html10.3280/spe2013-001007
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Vito Tanzi, 2006. "Fiscal Policy: When Theory Collides with Reality," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 9110, Inter-American Development Bank.
    2. Torsten Persson & Guido Tabellini, 2004. "Constitutional Rules and Fiscal Policy Outcomes," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 94(1), pages 25-45, March.
    3. Erixon, Lennart, 2011. "Under the influence of traumatic events, new ideas, economic experts and the ICT revolution - the economic policy and macroeconomic performance of Sweden in the 1990s and 2000s," Research Papers in Economics 2011:25, Stockholm University, Department of Economics.
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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • A11 - General Economics and Teaching - - General Economics - - - Role of Economics; Role of Economists
    • B22 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - History of Economic Thought since 1925 - - - Macroeconomics

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