The evolutionary and non-Darwinian economics of Joseph Schumpeter |
| |
Authors: | Geoffrey M Hodgson |
| |
Institution: | (1) The Judge Institute of Management Studies, University of Cambridge, Trumpington St, Cambridge CB2 1AG, UK (e-mail: gmh@eng.cam.ac.uk), GB |
| |
Abstract: | In a recent paper, Matthias Kelm (1997) accepts that `Schumpeter's definition of evolution does not contain any Darwinian
mechanism such as natural selection or any other biological concept' and that Schumpeter `made no such attempt' to apply `Darwinian
theory to economic evolution'. However, Kelm goes on to argue that Schumpeter would have been a Darwinian if circumstances
were different. It is argued here that this contention is highly implausible because Schumpeter explicitly rejected biological
metaphors and analogies in economics. Furthermore, Schumpeter misunderstood Darwinism. In his attempt to `interpret' Schumpeter
as a Darwinian, Kelm himself misrepresents the three core principles of Darwinism. In addition Kelm's paper contains several
misunderstandings and misrepresentations of the assessment of Schumpeter made by Hodgson (1993). This present response concludes
that Schumpeter was indeed one of the greatest economists of the twentieth century and that he may legitimately be described
as an `evolutionary economist'. However, he cautioned strongly against the use of biological metaphors in economics and there
is no legitimate basis for describing his approach as Darwinian. |
| |
Keywords: | : Schumpeter Evolutionary economics Darwinism |
本文献已被 SpringerLink 等数据库收录! |
|