Pluralism and Progress in Economics

Research Routines and Modern Economic Growth Models
1. Auflage 2026
ISBN: 978-1-041-13872-3
Verlag: Taylor & Francis Ltd

Buch, Englisch, 204 Seiten, Format (B × H): 156 mm x 234 mm

Reihe: Routledge INEM Advances in Economic Methodology

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 community of researchers creatively uses existing conceptual tools to grasp previously unrecognized causal dependencies in data. The book further evaluates the conceptions of scientific progress, identifying the limitations of conventional criteria in distinguishing genuine advancement in economics from analytical “game-playing.” Pawel 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, the 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.

The book will be of interest to experts and graduate students specializing in economic growth models, the history of 20th-century economics, the history and philosophy of science, and science and technology studies.

Zielgruppe

Academic and Postgraduate

Autoren/Hrsg.

Kawalec, Pawel

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Philosophie Philosophie: Allgemeines, Methoden
• Wirtschaftswissenschaften Volkswirtschaftslehre Volkswirtschaftslehre Allgemein Wirtschaftstheorie, Wirtschaftsphilosophie

Inhaltsverzeichnis

List of Figures; Preface; List of Acronyms and Abbreviations; 1. Introduction; 2. Dynamics of scientific knowledge; 3. Development of the neoclassical growth routine; 4. Plurality of growth models; 5. Criteria of progress in economics; 6. Challenges of pluralistic progress in growth research; 7. Conclusion; Index

Über Autor(innen)

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