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Cambridge Journal of Economics 2009 33(4):759-777; doi:10.1093/cje/bep035
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© The Author 2009. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Cambridge Political Economy Society. All rights reserved.

This article appears in the following Cambridge Journal of Economics issue: Special Issue: The Global Financial Crisis [View the issue table of contents]

The current economic crisis: its nature and the course of academic economics

Tony Lawson*

* University of Cambridge, UK

Address for correspondence: Faculty of Economics, Sidgwick Avenue, Cambridge CB3 9DD, UK; email: tony.lawson{at}econ.cam.ac.uk

The current crisis has triggered significant debate concerning economic theory and policy. Largely absent from this debate is an informed discussion of the methods used by economists in analysing the economy and formulating their proposals. But method matters. Here I argue that current academic research practices need to be transformed before real insight can be achieved. Specifically, I indicate why and how a more grounded framework than that presupposed by current research practices facilitates a potentially more fruitful approach to understanding the crisis.

Key Words: Economic crisis • Economists • Mathematical deductivist methods • Ontology • Asset backed securities • Collateralised debt obligations • Keynesianism

JEL classifications: A1, A2, A3, B3, B4, B5, G0, G1, G2, N0, N1, N2, P0, P1

Manuscript received March 24, 2009; final version received May 18, 2009.


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Introduction: the global financial crisis
Camb. J. Econ., July 1, 2009; 33(4): 531 - 538.
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