Given our EIPE Research Master in Economics and Philosophy, and the significant number of PhD students and staff at our faculty working on the philosophy of economics, there have been many courses in which students have been assigned readings on the fact/value debate in economics. In that context, I can warmly recommend a wonderful short interview with Sanjay Reddy by Perry Mehrling from the  Institute for New Economic Thinking (INET).

Reddy defends the position that economics is a profoundly value-entangled science, and that “Good theory is theory which illuminates the world, and good theory cannot start from a-priori premises which are disconnected from the world. Good theory has to start in part from observation from the world.”

I agree with every word Reddy says, but am a bit puzzled why Mehrling sees Reddy’s position as ‘a strong position’. In my view, if it is regarded (by economists?) as a ‘strong position’, that is just because economics has so forcefully tried to distance itself from any evaluative or otherwise ethical concerns; but in truth, economics has never been value-free, it has only fooled itself that it could be so. I’m really glad that Reddy is contributing to a better understanding of economics as value-entangled. Can’t wait to read the result of his INET project, “a book making a broad case for the resurrection of normative reasoning in economics”.

Over at Crooked Timber, some commentators offer additional sources on this topic, well worth checking out.