Catherine Herfeld
Biographic Data
| ID | 1032843 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Catherine Herfeld |
| GIVEN NAMES | Catherine |
| FAMILY NAME | Herfeld |
| SIGNATURE | HERFELD C |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Zurich |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-1471-8457 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 18 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 30 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 18 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2009 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
Enhancing the function of case studies
Philosophers of science have recently started to discuss the role of scientific methods for their field. Those tendencies have immediate methodological implications for Integrated History and Philosophy Science (&HPS) as an area that contributes to philosophy of science while drawing heavily on historical case studies. This paper addresses the questions whether and if so in which way scientific methods can be useful for research in &HPS by discus…
No More Than Exchanging Tools
This article explores steps toward cross-disciplinary interactions between economics and the behavioral sciences in the second half of the twentieth century. It focuses on Jacob Marschak's professional biography to illuminate how these interactions shaped the relationship particularly between mathematical economists and the behavioral sciences during the early years of the Cold War in the United States. The article examines the conditions under w…
Quantitative and Computational Approaches in the Social Studies of Economics
This special issue presents a diverse set of scholarly contributions that apply quantitative and computational methods to questions that fall within the broad scope of the ‘social studies of economics.’ The main aim of putting the contributions together is to showcase these methods and their potential to help generate novel insights and new accounts about economics as a scientific discipline embedded in a social context, about its evolution over …
Introduction to the topical Collection
The Role of Narratives in Transferring Rational Choice Models into Political Science
One striking observation in the history of rational choice models is that those models have not only been used in economics but been spread widely across the social and behavioral sciences. How do such model transfers proceed? By closely studying the early efforts to transfer such models by William Riker-a major protagonist in pushing the adoption of game-theoretic models in political science-this article examines the transfer process as one of "…
Why Do Women Philosophy Students Drop Out of Philosophy? Some Evidence from the Classroom at the Bachelor’s Level
It is well known that there has been a steady and significant underrepresentation of women in philosophy on different professional levels. Numerous hypotheses explaining this underrepresentation have been suggested, but empirical analyses are not yet extensive. In particular, studies of the phenomenon in different countries are nonexistent. In this paper, we present findings from an exploratory study in which we analyze the interests, abilities, …
Revisiting the criticisms of rational choice theories
Theories of rational choice are arguably the most prominent approaches to human behaviour in the social and behavioral sciences. At the same time, they have faced persistent criticism. In this paper, I revisit some of the core criticisms that have for a long time been levelled against them and discuss to what extent those criticisms are still effective, not only in light of recent advancements in the literature but also of the fact that there are…
Thick Concepts in Economics
In this paper, we examine the viability of avoiding value judgments encoded in thick concepts when these concepts are used in economic theories. We focus on what implications the use of such thick concepts might have for the tenability of the fact/value dichotomy in economics. Thick concepts have an evaluative and a descriptive component. Our suggestion is that despite attempts to rid thick concepts of their evaluative component, economists are o…
Understanding the rationality principle in economics as a functional a priori principle
Introduction
What We Learn and Do Not Learn from Ivan Moscati’s Historical Account of Utility Measurement
In his long-anticipated monograph, Ivan Moscati offers the first comprehensive history of utility measurement in economics. Moscati’s account focuses in particular on the evolution of different approaches to utility measurement within economics as well as on the accompanying changes in economists’ understanding of the concept of utility. In particular, he reconstructs the main arguments and counterarguments given by a number of great economists c…
Knowledge transfer and its contexts
The diffusion of scientific innovations
The Diffusion of Scientific Innovations
Although the diffusion of scientific innovations has been studied for a long time and in various disciplines, little work has been done to integrate findings into a larger framework. In this essay, we offer an integrated approach to studying how scientific innovations spread within and across preexisting and newly emerging research fields. Drawing on ‘sociology of science,’ ‘philosophy of science,’ and ‘history of science,’ we develop a framework…
Rethinking the Individualism-Holism Debate
Rethinking the Individualism-Holism Debate edited by Julie Zahle and Finn Collin is reviewed. Each of the contributions contained in the volume is summarized. The review concludes by assessing the volume’s usefulness for bringing clarity into the debate in the light of the editors’ self-set goal of rethinking the individualism-holism debate as one of the more important yet confused debates in philosophy of the social sciences
Network Analysis in the History of Economics
We present social network analysis as a complement to other methods in the history of economics. We first discuss why social network analysis is especially promising for the study of the history of recent economics. We then use an example of research using it to highlight some of its characteristics
From Theories of Human Behavior to Rules of Rational Choice
This article traces a normative turn between the middle of the 1940s and the early 1950s reflected in the reformulation, interpretation, and use of rational choice theories at the Cowles Commission for Research in Economics. This turn is paralleled by a transition from Jacob Marschak's to Tjalling Koopmans's research program. While rational choice theories initially raised high hopes that they would serve as empirical accounts to inform testable …
The Motive of Commitment and Its Implications for Rational Choice Theory
This paper addresses the explanatory role of the concept of a motive for action in economics. The aim of the paper is to show the difficulty economists have to accommodate the motive of commitment into their explanatory and predictive framework, i.e. rational choice theory. One difficulty is that the economists’ explanation becomes analytic when assuming preferences of commitment. Another difficulty is that it is highly doubtful whether commitmen…
The diffusion of scientific innovations
Knowledge transfer and its contexts
Network Analysis in the History of Economics
We present social network analysis as a complement to other methods in the history of economics. We first discuss why social network analysis is especially promising for the study of the history of recent economics. We then use an example of research using it to highlight some of its characteristics
From Theories of Human Behavior to Rules of Rational Choice
This article traces a normative turn between the middle of the 1940s and the early 1950s reflected in the reformulation, interpretation, and use of rational choice theories at the Cowles Commission for Research in Economics. This turn is paralleled by a transition from Jacob Marschak's to Tjalling Koopmans's research program. While rational choice theories initially raised high hopes that they would serve as empirical accounts to inform testable …
Revisiting the criticisms of rational choice theories
Theories of rational choice are arguably the most prominent approaches to human behaviour in the social and behavioral sciences. At the same time, they have faced persistent criticism. In this paper, I revisit some of the core criticisms that have for a long time been levelled against them and discuss to what extent those criticisms are still effective, not only in light of recent advancements in the literature but also of the fact that there are…
The Role of Narratives in Transferring Rational Choice Models into Political Science
One striking observation in the history of rational choice models is that those models have not only been used in economics but been spread widely across the social and behavioral sciences. How do such model transfers proceed? By closely studying the early efforts to transfer such models by William Riker-a major protagonist in pushing the adoption of game-theoretic models in political science-this article examines the transfer process as one of "…
Thick Concepts in Economics
In this paper, we examine the viability of avoiding value judgments encoded in thick concepts when these concepts are used in economic theories. We focus on what implications the use of such thick concepts might have for the tenability of the fact/value dichotomy in economics. Thick concepts have an evaluative and a descriptive component. Our suggestion is that despite attempts to rid thick concepts of their evaluative component, economists are o…
Understanding the rationality principle in economics as a functional a priori principle
The Motive of Commitment and Its Implications for Rational Choice Theory
This paper addresses the explanatory role of the concept of a motive for action in economics. The aim of the paper is to show the difficulty economists have to accommodate the motive of commitment into their explanatory and predictive framework, i.e. rational choice theory. One difficulty is that the economists’ explanation becomes analytic when assuming preferences of commitment. Another difficulty is that it is highly doubtful whether commitmen…
The Motive of Commitment and Its Implications for Rational Choice Theory
This paper addresses the explanatory role of the concept of a motive for action in economics. The aim of the paper is to show the difficulty economists have to accommodate the motive of commitment into their explanatory and predictive framework, i.e. rational choice theory. One difficulty is that the economists’ explanation becomes analytic when assuming preferences of commitment. Another difficulty is that it is highly doubtful whether commitmen…
The Diffusion of Scientific Innovations
Although the diffusion of scientific innovations has been studied for a long time and in various disciplines, little work has been done to integrate findings into a larger framework. In this essay, we offer an integrated approach to studying how scientific innovations spread within and across preexisting and newly emerging research fields. Drawing on ‘sociology of science,’ ‘philosophy of science,’ and ‘history of science,’ we develop a framework…
Rethinking the Individualism-Holism Debate
Rethinking the Individualism-Holism Debate edited by Julie Zahle and Finn Collin is reviewed. Each of the contributions contained in the volume is summarized. The review concludes by assessing the volume’s usefulness for bringing clarity into the debate in the light of the editors’ self-set goal of rethinking the individualism-holism debate as one of the more important yet confused debates in philosophy of the social sciences
Network Analysis in the History of Economics
We present social network analysis as a complement to other methods in the history of economics. We first discuss why social network analysis is especially promising for the study of the history of recent economics. We then use an example of research using it to highlight some of its characteristics
From Theories of Human Behavior to Rules of Rational Choice
This article traces a normative turn between the middle of the 1940s and the early 1950s reflected in the reformulation, interpretation, and use of rational choice theories at the Cowles Commission for Research in Economics. This turn is paralleled by a transition from Jacob Marschak's to Tjalling Koopmans's research program. While rational choice theories initially raised high hopes that they would serve as empirical accounts to inform testable …
What We Learn and Do Not Learn from Ivan Moscati’s Historical Account of Utility Measurement
In his long-anticipated monograph, Ivan Moscati offers the first comprehensive history of utility measurement in economics. Moscati’s account focuses in particular on the evolution of different approaches to utility measurement within economics as well as on the accompanying changes in economists’ understanding of the concept of utility. In particular, he reconstructs the main arguments and counterarguments given by a number of great economists c…
Knowledge transfer and its contexts
The diffusion of scientific innovations
Thick Concepts in Economics
In this paper, we examine the viability of avoiding value judgments encoded in thick concepts when these concepts are used in economic theories. We focus on what implications the use of such thick concepts might have for the tenability of the fact/value dichotomy in economics. Thick concepts have an evaluative and a descriptive component. Our suggestion is that despite attempts to rid thick concepts of their evaluative component, economists are o…
Understanding the rationality principle in economics as a functional a priori principle
Introduction
Why Do Women Philosophy Students Drop Out of Philosophy? Some Evidence from the Classroom at the Bachelor’s Level
It is well known that there has been a steady and significant underrepresentation of women in philosophy on different professional levels. Numerous hypotheses explaining this underrepresentation have been suggested, but empirical analyses are not yet extensive. In particular, studies of the phenomenon in different countries are nonexistent. In this paper, we present findings from an exploratory study in which we analyze the interests, abilities, …
Revisiting the criticisms of rational choice theories
Theories of rational choice are arguably the most prominent approaches to human behaviour in the social and behavioral sciences. At the same time, they have faced persistent criticism. In this paper, I revisit some of the core criticisms that have for a long time been levelled against them and discuss to what extent those criticisms are still effective, not only in light of recent advancements in the literature but also of the fact that there are…
Quantitative and Computational Approaches in the Social Studies of Economics
This special issue presents a diverse set of scholarly contributions that apply quantitative and computational methods to questions that fall within the broad scope of the ‘social studies of economics.’ The main aim of putting the contributions together is to showcase these methods and their potential to help generate novel insights and new accounts about economics as a scientific discipline embedded in a social context, about its evolution over …
Introduction to the topical Collection
The Role of Narratives in Transferring Rational Choice Models into Political Science
One striking observation in the history of rational choice models is that those models have not only been used in economics but been spread widely across the social and behavioral sciences. How do such model transfers proceed? By closely studying the early efforts to transfer such models by William Riker-a major protagonist in pushing the adoption of game-theoretic models in political science-this article examines the transfer process as one of "…
Enhancing the function of case studies
Philosophers of science have recently started to discuss the role of scientific methods for their field. Those tendencies have immediate methodological implications for Integrated History and Philosophy Science (&HPS) as an area that contributes to philosophy of science while drawing heavily on historical case studies. This paper addresses the questions whether and if so in which way scientific methods can be useful for research in &HPS by discus…
No More Than Exchanging Tools
This article explores steps toward cross-disciplinary interactions between economics and the behavioral sciences in the second half of the twentieth century. It focuses on Jacob Marschak's professional biography to illuminate how these interactions shaped the relationship particularly between mathematical economists and the behavioral sciences during the early years of the Cold War in the United States. The article examines the conditions under w…
Epistemology (14 works) · Computer Science (13 works) · Philosophy (13 works) · Sociology (11 works) · Economic Theory and Institutions (10 works) · Economics (10 works) · Philosophy and History of Science (9 works) · Positive economics (8 works) · Philosophy of science (6 works) · Psychology (6 works)