Is Economic Theory Truly Scientific? My Current Research Began with This Question. Let's Learn to Explain the Scientific Validity of Our Own Theories While Respecting Hypotheses That Differ from Them.
Participant Profile
Masahiro Kawamata
Research Area: History of Economics1980: Graduated from the Faculty of Economics, ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ 1982: Completed the master's program at the Graduate School of Economics, ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ 1989: Withdrew from the Doctoral Programs at the Graduate School of Economics, ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡, after completing course requirements After serving as a full-time lecturer, associate professor, and professor in the Faculty of Social Sciences at Hosei University, he assumed his current position in 2011. 2010: Received his PhD in Economics from ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡
Masahiro Kawamata
Research Area: History of Economics1980: Graduated from the Faculty of Economics, ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ 1982: Completed the master's program at the Graduate School of Economics, ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡ 1989: Withdrew from the Doctoral Programs at the Graduate School of Economics, ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡, after completing course requirements After serving as a full-time lecturer, associate professor, and professor in the Faculty of Social Sciences at Hosei University, he assumed his current position in 2011. 2010: Received his PhD in Economics from ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡
Encountering My Research Theme and Its Appeal
My research theme focuses on the development of general equilibrium theory, seeking to answer questions such as "What kind of discipline is economics?" and "Is economics progressing?"
My interest in the history of economics was sparked by a question I had in class: Do economic theories, which claim to be a social science, truly possess scientific characteristics? Compared to theories in physics, for example, economic theories did not feel realistic to me. When I was an undergraduate student in the 1970s, there were few good textbooks, and classics by Hicks and Samuelson were read in their place. In their works, they appealed to the arguments of their predecessors, such as Walras and Marshall, to justify the assumptions of their theories. Similarly, I felt that most economists throughout history have sought the validity of their own theories in the arguments of their predecessors. Pigou, who established welfare economics, stated during the cost controversy around the 1930s that the validity of economic theory is demonstrated by the fact that it has been thought of in the same way for a long time. Through this process, I became convinced that studying the history of economics is crucial to understanding its scientific characteristics.
No matter how formalized economics becomes, there is always a vision in the background that generates its formal system and characterizes the theory. The interesting part is to decipher the vision behind the formal theory, interpret the economic theory, and characterize its development.
A Message to Students
The word "science" originates from a Latin word meaning "to know," but in today's world of information overload, the significance of doing science lies rather in proving the scientific correctness of information¡ªthat is, that the information is logically consistent and can withstand falsification. However, in many fields of science, multiple hypotheses compete with each other, each being logically consistent on its own but mutually incompatible. This is especially true in the social sciences, which include normative analysis, where a diversity of ideas is possible. In such situations, I believe it is important to be able to clearly explain the scientific validity of your own theory while respecting hypotheses that differ from it.
(Interview conducted in December 2011)
*Profile and position are as of the time of the interview.