The rhetoric of policy relevance in international economics

William Milberg

Journal of Economic Methodology, 1996, vol. 3, issue 2, 237-259

Abstract: This paper addresses the link between the generation of economic knowledge and economic policy conclusions. Focusing on the case of research in international trade, It establishes a taxonomy of rhetorical practices used to make such a link. The flexibility observed in these practices contrasts markedly with the rigidity of the conventions of theoretical and empirical knowledge creation. A survey of articles on international trade from four major journals from 1988 to 1992 shows that most policy-relevant research is entirely theoretical, but the incidence of rhetorical practices legitimating policy conclusions depends on the nature of the research method (theoretical or empirical), and the journal in which the research is published. The survey data support the conclusion that the flexibility of rhetorical practices is integral to the legitimation of the knowledge generated by international trade economists.

Keywords: Rhetoric; methodology; trade policy; new international economics; epistemology (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 1996
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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DOI: 10.1080/13501789600000017

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