The Manchester School Of Economic And Social Studies

Over the last two decades there has been a great deal of research into nonlinear dynamic models in economics, finance and the social sciences. This book contains twenty papers that range over very recent applications in these areas. Topics covered include structural change and economic growth, disequilibrium dynamics and economic policy as well as models with boundedly rational agents. The book illustrates some of the most recent research tools in this area and will be of interest to economists working in economic dynamics and to mathematicians interested in seeing ideas from nonlinear dynamics and complexity theory applied to the economic sciences.

Society, Economics and Philosophy represents the full range of Polanyi's interests outside of his scientific work: economics, politics, society, philosophy of science, religion and positivist obstacles to it, and art. Polanyi's principal ideas are contained in three essays: on the scientific revolution, the creative imagination and the mind-body relation. Precisely because of Polanyi's work in the physical sciences, his writings have a unique dimension not found in other advocates of the market and too infrequently found even in philosophers of science.Polanyi was a powerful critic of totalitarianism and of the deficiencies of the usual defenses of freedom which helped to prepare the way for it. Freedom, he argued, can be based only upon truth and dedication to transcendent ideals, not upon skepticism, utilitarianism and the liberty of doing merely as one pleases. At a time when easy slogans about socialism were dominant in intellectual circles, epitomized by Sidney and Beatrice Webb, and when calls for the central planning of scientific research were made by such as J.D. Bernal, Polanyi exposed their errors and showed that science can flourish only in a free society.More radically than even von Mises and Hayek, Polanyi showed that an industrial economy can operate only polycentrically, that central planning is logically impossible, and that what was called by that name in the Soviet Union was in reality no such thing. Likewise, scientific research can proceed, not by a central plan, but only by the spontaneous self-adjustment of separate initiatives to discover a common reality. Against the positivism dominant within philosophy of science, he argued that the notion of reality must be restored and made central. Yet physical sciences, he also argued, are only one branch of science, and the sciences of life and mind are logically richer and more complex and cannot be reduced to the former, nor mind to body or to computers, nor art to its ph

Michael Polanyi was an eminent physical chemist, economist, and philosopher. This book explains how the many diverse topics that concerned him belong together as essential elements in his effort to play physician to "the sickness of the modern mind." Using both published and unpublished writings, Prosch critically evaluates Polanyi's efforts and examines the value of his work as philosophy. The book contains a complete bibliography of Polanyi's humanistic publications and all of his earlier works.

This sequel to the author's "Early Development in Mathematical Economics" covers developments in this field after the appearance of Cournot's "Recherches" in 1838 and until the publication of Jevons' "Theory" in 1871.

Known for its clarity, comprehensiveness, and balance, the latest edition of A History of Economic Theory and Method continues that tradition of excellence. Ekelund and Hébert’s survey provides historical and international contexts for how economic models have served social needs throughout the centuries—beginning with the ancient Greeks through the present time. The authors not only trace ideas that have persisted but skillfully demonstrate that past, discredited ideas also have a way of spawning critical thinking and encouraging new directions in economic analysis. Coverage that distinguishes the Sixth Edition from its predecessors includes a detailed analysis of economic solutions by John Stuart Mill and Edwin Chadwick to problems raised by the Industrial Revolution; the role of psychology and “experiments” in understanding demand and consumer behavior; discussions of modern economic theory as it interrelates with other social sciences; and a close look at the historical development of the critical role of entrepreneurship, both in its productive and unproductive variants. The authors’ creative approach gives readers a feel for the thought processes of the great minds in economics and underscores key ideas impacting contemporary thought and practice. Well-crafted discussions are further enriched by absorbing examples and figures. Thorough suggested reading lists give options for more in-depth explorations by interested readers.

Presents the contributions that early development theory can make to growth economics in answering why some countries are richer than others and why some economies grow faster than others.