Economic Theories and Their Relational Structures: A Model-Theoretic Characterization

by Erwin Klein

Examines the foundations of contemporary theoretical economics, reporting on original research into logical, epistemological, and methodological issues. Applying elementary concepts from model theory and analytical tools which are standard in foundations research, the author aims at three distinct but interrelated a rigorous characterization of the notion "empirical economic theory"; the determination of the epistemological and methodological status of a class of "non-empirical" theories in economics; and the proposal of a taxonomy of economic theories based on epistemological status as intended by the builder of the theory and the pragmatic function of a theory. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.

246 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1997