A logical critique of mathematical formalism in economics

Ken Dennis

Journal of Economic Methodology, 1995, vol. 2, issue 2, 181-200

Abstract: Mathematical economic theory is lacking in logical rigour. Even if the mathematics used in constructing formal economic theory is rigorous as pure mathematics, economic theory possesses both mathematical and non-mathematical components. But mathematical reductionism fails to formalize the non-mathematical components of economic theory, and the method of numerics (outlined in this paper) shows how, in simple cases, the two components of economic theory can be formally identified, distinguished, and integrated. However, the real challenge to formalizing economic theory points not to mathematics but to problems of constructing a logic coping with propositional attitudes (belief, preference, intention) that lie at the very heart of economic rationality and can be treated only by means of intensional logic.

Keywords: economic; theory; logic; rigour; formalization; mathematics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 1995
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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DOI: 10.1080/13501789500000014

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