This means that the market itself is a political construct, rather than a natural order that should not be tampered with by 'political' intervention. Think of child labour, which used to be a perfectly legitimate object of market transaction until the early 20th century, even in the richest countries.
More to the point, even the boundary of the economy – and thus the scope of economics – is determined by ethical and political judgments. Whereas the particles and compounds studied by scientists do not hold political and moral views, human beings who populate the economy do, and so we cannot fully understand the economy without understanding politics and ethics. However, my book emphasises that economics is a fundamentally political and moral subject. Many economists believe themselves, and tell other people, that economics is a 'value-free' science, like physics or chemistry. It's not a science like biology's a science. This need not be the case: most of economics can be understood by anyone with a secondary education if it's explained in an accessible way, as I argue in my book, Economics: The User's Guide. This fear of economics has reduced the ability of citizens to influence economic policy-making, making them increasingly feel powerless and thus disinterested in democratic politics. It's doesn't have to be boring.ĭespite this recognition, most people are reluctant to learn economics because there's a widespread perception that it’s a very technical subject that's beyond the reach of non-specialists (and even a bit boring). In a democracy, you'll never get a decent policy in any area unless the voting public is interested and knowledgeable enough about it - and the economy is no exception.
More importantly, it's increasingly recognised that:Ī) Ordinary citizens need to get involved in economic debatesĬ) It's not a science like biology's a scienceĭ) There are lots of different ways to think about it Employers have become more vocal in complaining about the quality of the 'products' (graduates) that they get from economics degree programmes – highly trained in mathematics and statistics, but ignorant of real world economies. Student movements like Rethinking Economics have been calling for greater openness and plurality in the teaching of economics. However, this state of affairs may not last for long. Unfortunately, the world has been too forgiving, for despite the fact that they've completely bungled their jobs, the same economists are still telling the world what to do! There‘s been a widespread perception since the 2008 global financial crisis that many economists have miserably failed in their job of managing the economy.
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