Pluralism and Progress in Economics - Couverture rigide

Kawalec, Paweł

Couverture rigide

ISBN 10 : 1041138725 ISBN 13 : 9781041138723

Editeur : Routledge, 2026

Synopsis

Pluralism and Progress in Economics analyzes the dynamics of growth research by introducing the concept of research routines – meso-level patterns of communal practice functionally coordinated by symbolic representations.

This book tracks the development of neoclassical growth theory through four distinct stages: exploration, extension, elaboration, and exploitation. It argues that scientific change in growth research is a processual development driven by diaphoric learning, where a community of researchers creatively uses existing conceptual tools to grasp previously unrecognized causal dependencies in data. This book further evaluates the conceptions of scientific progress, identifying the limitations of conventional criteria in distinguishing genuine advancement in economics from analytical “game-playing.” Paweł Kawalec proposes an ontic criterion of intensive progress, which validates an emergent research routine based on its isolation of ontologically novel causal structures. By distinguishing between derivational and ontological unification, and drawing on Robert Solow’s criteria of model choice, this book defends progressive pluralism and piecemeal realism. It concludes that the coexistence of diverse models is not a sign of relativism but a mature response to the world’s ontic complexity, providing a robust “library of models” essential for contextualized economic applications.

This book will be of interest to experts and graduate students specializing in economic growth models, the history of twentieth-century economics, the history and philosophy of science, and science and technology studies.

A propos du livre

À propos de l'auteur

Paweł Kawalec is Full Professor in the Department of Epistemology, Faculty of Philosophy at the John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin (KUL), Poland.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: Routledge
• Date d'édition: 2026
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 1041138725
• ISBN 13: 9781041138723
• Reliure: Relié
• Nombre de pages: 200
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
• Personne responsable: non disponible