An article on the epistemology of economics, inspired by my father’s work, in which I explore the connection between the gradual shift of certain strands of economic theory towards the methods and models of the exact sciences and the resulting loss of economics’ historical, social, and political dimensions. This transformation has ultimately led to profoundly political choices being presented as the inevitable outcomes of technical optimization problems.
The history of the past thirty years, and particularly Europe’s crisis, can also be understood in light of this cultural revolution, which took shape primarily within academia. By reducing economic debate to a matter of mathematical formalization and the search for optimal solutions, the inherently political nature of economic decisions has progressively been removed from public discussion. This has not only weakened the historical and social foundations of economic thought but has also narrowed the scope for democratic debate over the choices that shape the organization of society.
If we are to identify one of the decisive cultural shifts behind the rise of neoliberalism, it is precisely this: the transformation of a historical, social, and moral discipline into what purports to be an exact science, capable of presenting as technical necessities what ultimately remain political choices.
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09538259.2026.2724133
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