Elgar Handbook of Teaching Philosophy to Economists

By Giancarlo Ianulardo, John B. Davis and Ricardo F. Crespo

We are excited to present the Handbook of Teaching Philosophy to Economists to the economics community. This work is unique in its field, being the first to argue for the importance of philosophy in economics education. While we are aware of the challenges and barriers it may face, we are absolutely convinced that, as a discipline born from philosophy, economics cannot do without it. Therefore, we have embarked on this exciting project, joining forces with numerous scholars around the world who are experts in different fields of economics.

Handbook of Teaching Philosophy to Economists
Edited by Giancarlo Ianulardo, John B. Davis, and Ricardo F. Crespo
316 pp | Hardback | eBook
ISBN: 978 1 0353 3681 4

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Having taught generations of students in different countries, we have observed that the current approach to economics privileges quantitative analysis, reducing the complexity of human beings — with all their emotions, desires, aspirations, and imaginations — to a ‘representative maximising agent’. We do not claim that this approach is necessarily wrong or should be abandoned altogether, but it is certainly limiting and must be subjected to scrutiny if the discipline is to make any progress. However, the lack of a philosophical mindset and proper philosophical education in current economics curricula means that the conceptual assumptions of current models cannot be questioned, stifling progress. This is not only the case at an academic level, but also at a policy and societal level. This leads to inaccurate predictions and explanations that are unequal to the challenges facing society today.

In this Handbook, our aim has been to bridge the gap between the flourishing scholarship in the philosophy of economics and the need for a deeper rethink in economics education, as called for by many students and educators today. Our ambition was to provide students, teachers and researchers with new tools that are both practical and theoretical, thus helping to pave the way for a revision of the economics curriculum.

The result is a book offering a variety of fresh perspectives from around the world on how economics students can use philosophical reasoning to critically and reflectively address pressing contemporary economic and social issues.

Many books have been published on how to reform economics curricula, as well as on the approaches, techniques and topics that should be covered to produce students capable of tackling our current challenges, and there are some good professional textbooks and monographs on the philosophy of economics. However, none of these have made a case for the need for philosophy in economics education, explained how it could be made relevant to economists or demonstrated how it could integrate and improve the teaching of economics and business, nor have they offered suggestions on how a course in the philosophy of economics could be structured.

The Handbook consists of two sections. In the first part, the focus has been on the theoretical aspects involved in and underpinning the teaching of philosophy, answering questions as:

What philosophy is needed in economics and economics education?
How to make philosophy relevant to economists?
For what economics’ topics does philosophy matter?
How to integrate philosophy into economics education?
What does scientific rigour involve?
What are the philosophical challenges of behavioural public policy?
What are the borders between positive and normative statements in economics?

The second section instead, has focused on the pedagogical features involved in the teaching of philosophy of economics taking stock from the experience of scholars around the world and providing practical advice to would-be teachers of philosophy to economists. Thus, scholars answered questions such as:

How to design philosophy of economics/economic methodology in the economics curriculum?
How to start philosophizing with economics students?
What do economics teachers usually fail to say to their students about ends in economics? 0
How to talk about justice and rights to students of economics?
What is the meaning of the political element in ‘political’ economy?
How to explain ecocentrism and anthropocentrism to economics students?
What are the philosophical perspectives on the role of values in economics?
How to teach poverty in economics from a philosophical point of view?
Why economists should want philosophy
What are the challenges in the pedagogy of undergraduate economics?

We do not claim to have answered all questions nor to have provided a definitive answer to the questions posed, many more are still open and others yet to come, but we have started a conversation and keeping the dialogue open to new contributions is precisely the vitality and essence of philosophy from Socrates to the present day. Indeed, we are committed to take this journey forward with new initiatives as our TOPTEN Network and everyone is welcomed to join us on board.

This article was written by Giancarlo Ianulardo, Senior Lecturer in Economics, Exeter Business School, University of Exeter, UK, John B. Davis, Professor Emeritus of Economics, Marquette University, USA and Professor Emeritus of Economics, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands and Ricardo F. Crespo, Professor of Philosophy of Economics, IAE Business School, Universidad Austral and Researcher, Argentine Council of Scientific Research (CONICET), Argentina