What economists forgot (and what Wall Street and the City never learned)
A sociological perspective on the crisis in economics
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 7102828 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Stephen Mennell (0000-0003-0207-5172, University College Dublin, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2014 |
| Volume | 27 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 20-37 |
| Publication date | 2014-07-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | History of the Human Sciences (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0952-6951 • E-ISSN: 1461-720X |
| Publisher | SAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1177/0952695114534426 |
| OpenAlex | W2055854381 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 6 |
| References cited | 25 |
The article presents a figurational sociological perspective on the recent history of the discipline of economics in the wake of the global financial crisis or ‘Great Recession’ that began in 2007–8. It is argued that the orthodox mainstream of economics has provided ideological cover for abstract individualism, for short-term greed, and for the denial of the wider social responsibilities of business and finance. The faith in ‘free markets’ has been associated with a blindness to power relationships and an indifference to economic inequality. Orthodox economics is congruent with the mythical American Dream. The article draws upon the writings of Norbert Elias to reflect upon economics, and then in turn uses those reflections to raise some questions about Elias’s theories, particularly his ideas concerning functional democratization and increasing pressures towards more habitual foresight
Applied economics · Economics · Epistemology · Faith · Financial crisis · Ideology · Individualism · Keynesian economics · Mainstream economics · Neoclassical economics · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Positive economics · Power (physics · Social science · Sociology · Economic Theory and Institutions · Law · Philosophy · Post-Communist Economic and Political Transition · Sociology and Norbert Elias
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| Unique citing works | 6 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,67 |
| Citation span | 2017 - 2024 (8) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 6 |