Methodology and Philosophy of Economics

My continued dissatisfaction with the methods of economics is reflected in the research topics I pursued during my studies: an undergraduate thesis in Cape Town on the Allais Paradox and Oxford MPhil dissertation on the money pump (microeconomic theory and empirical ‘refutations’); the estimation of intergenerational mobility for my Cape Town Master’s and external validity for my PhD (microeconometric methods and their application). In all these cases, I engaged with work on the methodology and philosophy of economics.

My research interests in this area are very diverse, although related and relatable – as will become evident over time. Among these are: foundations of choice theory, empirical violations of choice theory axioms, adequacy of economic models, limitations to the new trajectory of experimental and behavioural economics, a range of problems in the methodology of applied microeconometrics, external validity/extrapolation, deriving policy implications from economic models and findings, etc. As an ‘outsider’ to philosophy of economics as a niche discipline, I also take an interest in the limitations of approaches by philosophers and methodologists themselves.