What’s Wrong with Economics?

Historian Robert Skidelsky acknowledges that the field of economics and its practitioners have come in for a great deal of criticism, particularly for not foreseeing the 2008 financial crisis and for prioritizing mathematics while disregarding real-world information. Skidelsky – emeritus professor of political economy at the University of Warwick and author of the definitive biography of John Maynard Keynes – doesn’t pile on, but he does offer a comprehensive, measured and insightful critique of the science, written with subtlety, balance and colorful references. Without complicating the subject, he guides readers to understand economics’ value to society and to question its morals, motives and results.

A Humanity, or a Hard Science?

Compared to other subjects in the humanities, economics relies more on data collection and observation, because money proves an effective measure of motivation. Economists work with models, diagrams and equations that seek to reach objective scientific conclusions.