ON THE NOTION OF PERMANENT AND TEMPORARY CAUSES: THE LEGACY OF RICARDO

Maria Cristina Marcuzzo

Journal of the History of Economic Thought, 2014, vol. 36, issue 4, 421-434

Abstract: This paper considers the distinction made by David Ricardo between “permanent” and “temporary” causes, which he sometimes refers to also as “stable” and “accidental” causes (see The Works and Correspondence of David Ricardo [hereinafter Works] I: 86, 88, 92; VI: 154), to derive implications useful to distinguish his approach from subsequent developments of the notions of short-period and long-period equilibrium. In particular, I trace the change of focus in the concept of “permanent” forces brought about by Alfred Marshall—from whose insights Alfred Kahn and John Maynard Keynes drew inspiration for their short-period analysis—which paved the way to fundamental changes in the method and theory.It is argued that Ricardo’s distinction maintains an heuristic value, in particular vis-à-vis the distinction between short and long period, which is part of the common language in standard economics.

Date: 2014
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Chapter: On the Notion of Permanent and Temporary Causes. The Legacy of Ricardo (2024)
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