The (formal) return to openness: A quantitative contribution to the history of economic thought

J. Daniel Aromi

Journal of Applied Economics, 2013, vol. 16, 203-222

Abstract: We develop a comprehensive quantitative account of changing practices in economics in the last 122 years. The analysis uses word detection algorithms to partially characterize prevailing practices. We document a shift toward isolation from other disciplines during most of the twentieth century. In sharp contrast, the most recent decades show a strong move towards a more connected discipline. Periods of more connectedness are associated with openness to a broader set of features of economic agents and the economic environment. In parallel, the 1960s and 1970s show a notable acceleration in the move towards a more mathematical approach. This development did not reverse. As a result, the current state of the discipline is characterized by an embrace of mathematical tools together with openness to a wider set of aspects and findings developed in other disciplines. Most of the reported variables show surprisingly high correlations across disciplines and across journals. An online appendix is available.

Keywords: history of economic thought; methodology (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A12 B1 B4 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013
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https://ucema.edu.ar/publicaciones/download/volume16/aromi.pdf Paper (application/pdf)
https://ucema.edu.ar/publicaciones/download/volume16/aromi_appendix.pdf Online Appendix (application/pdf)

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Journal Article: The (Formal) Return to Openness: A Quantitative Contribution to the History of Economic Thought (2013)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:cem:jaecon:v:16:y:2013:n:2:p:203-222

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