Routledge Handbook of Macroeconomic Methodology

The present macroeconomic crisis has demonstrated that a deeper understanding of the importance of relevant macroeconomic theories and methods is wanting. Additionally, lack of methodological awareness is behind much of the disagreement within macroeconomics which, looked upon from outside, often appears incomprehensible. The Handbook gives a structured presentation of the study of principles and procedures by which macroeconomics is researched, taught and communicated both within academia and to a wider audience, and why specific theories, research strategies and teaching are preferred. The principles of selecting theory relevant to real-world problems are the core of methodology. This book contains a broad range of arguments behind theory construction and appraisal and the consequences of these choices within the field of macroeconomics. An international range of experts provide clear analysis of key concepts, ideas and principles to give academics, students and others a better understanding of the macroeconomics behind policy conclusions which are put forward at different levels.

Introduction: The scope and content of the Handbook I. Philosophy of Science Perspectives I. Philosophy of Science Perspectives I.1. Methodological Individualism and Macroeconomics - Andy Denis I.2. Deduction, Induction and Abduction - Lars Syll I.3. Instrumentalism - J. Daniel Hammond I.4 From positivism to naturalism in macroeconomics - John Hart I.5. Holism & Fallacy of Composition - Victoria Chick & Jesper Jespersen I.6. Macroeconomics and Ethics - Finn Olesen II. Concepts II.1 Time in Macroeconomics -Mogens Ove Madsen II.2 Uncertainty and Macroeconomic Methodology -Sheila Dow II.3 Path dependency -Mark Setterfield II.4 Equilibrium - Bert Tieben II.5 Causality and macroeconomics - Alessandro Vercelli II.6 Microeconomic foundation of macroeconomics -Nuno Ornelas Martins II.7 Open and closed systems - Victoria Chick II.8. Money and Macroeconomic Methodology - Claude Gnos III. Schools of Thought III.1. Classical Political Economy - Nuno Ornelas Martins III.2. Neoclassical Macroeconomics - Bert Tieben III.3. Keynes’s Macroeconomic Method - Victoria Chick & Jesper Jespersen III.4. Post Keynesian Methodology - John E. King III.5. The Austrian Denial of Macroeconomics - Scott Scheall III.6. What was Marx’s Method, actually? - Alan Freeman III.7. Methodological Pluralism in Macroeconomics - Ioana Negru & Alessandro Vercelli IV. Models, Econometrics and Measurement IV.1. Use of Mathematics in macroeconomic analysis -Lars W. Josephsen IV.2. Explanation and Forecasting - Marcel Boumans IV.3. Using macroeconomic models in policy practice - Frank den Butter IV.4. Traditional Methods of Macroeconometrics - Henning Bunzel IV.5. Macroeconometrics: Cointegrated VAR Method - Katarina Juselius IV.6. National Accounts and Macroeconomic Methodology -Geoff Tily V. Communicating Macroeconomics V.1. The rhetorical perspective on macroeconomics - Arjo Klamer V.2. Teaching Macroeconomic Methodology - Jan Holm Ingemann Index

Jesper Jespersen is professor emeritus at Roskilde University, Denmark. His research interests include the economics of Keynes and macroeconomic methodology. Victoria Chick is professor emeritus at University College London, UK. She has written extensively on macroeconomics and the economics of Keynes. Bert Tieben is researcher at SEO Amsterdam Economics, the Netherlands. He also teaches history of economic thought at Amsterdam University College. His research focuses on economic methodology and the history of economic thought.