Moral and imoral in economical quantification

Doina Simion

MPRA Paper from University Library of Munich, Germany

Abstract: Could there be something immoral in economic measurements and quantification? Could there be immorality in statistics? It is often said that statistics is a lie, an untruth,a delusion. Lies are dishonoring and deeply immoral, and are incriminated by both religious and juridical norms. Where do these accusations against statistics come from? They derive from the obvious modern strive for excessive simplifications, from ignoring scientific rigor and from eluding theoretical principles by narrow pragmatic solutions. What is the critical point that shifts to economic thinking? In measurement: the formula. Who released it? Where and when was it released? By whom, where, when and how is it used? In quantification: aggregation and data systematization. We systemize and process data without asking ourselves how much of the economic and social content that we are studying remains in the shapes that we have built.

Keywords: quantifications; simplifications; formula; misinformation; delusion (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A12 A13 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2009-09-07
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:pra:mprapa:23292

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