ERIK GRIMMER-SOLEM
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199260416
- eISBN:
- 9780191717369
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199260416.003.0001
- Subject:
- History, Social History, Economic History
This introductory chapter begins with a discussion of one of the most important heterodox variants of economics, the so-called ‘Historical School’ and the emergence of a ‘younger Historical School’ ...
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This introductory chapter begins with a discussion of one of the most important heterodox variants of economics, the so-called ‘Historical School’ and the emergence of a ‘younger Historical School’ in Germany between 1860 and 1890. It discusses studies on the impact of statistics and historical economics on empirical social research and the emergence of sociology, and the influence of the ‘Historical School’ on American academic disciplines and the social question as a methodological and epistemological problem in German social science The chapter also considers relevance of Gustav Schmoller and historical economics to the history of Imperial Germany. An overview of the subsequent chapters is presented.Less
This introductory chapter begins with a discussion of one of the most important heterodox variants of economics, the so-called ‘Historical School’ and the emergence of a ‘younger Historical School’ in Germany between 1860 and 1890. It discusses studies on the impact of statistics and historical economics on empirical social research and the emergence of sociology, and the influence of the ‘Historical School’ on American academic disciplines and the social question as a methodological and epistemological problem in German social science The chapter also considers relevance of Gustav Schmoller and historical economics to the history of Imperial Germany. An overview of the subsequent chapters is presented.
Erik Grimmer-Solem
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199260416
- eISBN:
- 9780191717369
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199260416.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, Social History, Economic History
Social science and social reform flourished in Imperial Germany, and the historical economist Gustav Schmoller made fundamental contributions to both. Despite this, historians have neglected him. ...
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Social science and social reform flourished in Imperial Germany, and the historical economist Gustav Schmoller made fundamental contributions to both. Despite this, historians have neglected him. Questioning the term ‘German Historical School’ associated with Schmoller, this book reveals the European context of Schmoller's thought and the influence of empiricism, statistics, and advances in the natural sciences on his choice of methods. By exploring the social context in detail, it demonstrates how the nexus of young scholars around Schmoller fundamentally transformed German economics into a tool of social reform which was directly relevant to the many ‘social questions’ raised by rapid industrialization and urbanization in Germany in the 1860s. These reform efforts were novel in that they put forth the idea that inequality and poverty were ills emerging from the division of labour which society had an obligation to remedy. As a result, an awareness of the social implications of individual economic action emerged which proved remarkably useful for the development of social policy. Although the dissemination of this reform message influenced public opinion and put social reform on the political agenda, this book shows that Schmoller and his colleagues remained a beleaguered group, attacked from all political directions. It brings the fissures within German liberalism into sharp relief, revealing the persistence of a potent ideal of classlessness that fundamentally shaped German social policy. The author makes a unique and much-needed contribution to our understanding of the thought and milieu of Gustav Schmoller, the origins of social reform, and the development of the social sciences in Germany. The resulting volume addresses central questions in the historiography of the German Empire.Less
Social science and social reform flourished in Imperial Germany, and the historical economist Gustav Schmoller made fundamental contributions to both. Despite this, historians have neglected him. Questioning the term ‘German Historical School’ associated with Schmoller, this book reveals the European context of Schmoller's thought and the influence of empiricism, statistics, and advances in the natural sciences on his choice of methods. By exploring the social context in detail, it demonstrates how the nexus of young scholars around Schmoller fundamentally transformed German economics into a tool of social reform which was directly relevant to the many ‘social questions’ raised by rapid industrialization and urbanization in Germany in the 1860s. These reform efforts were novel in that they put forth the idea that inequality and poverty were ills emerging from the division of labour which society had an obligation to remedy. As a result, an awareness of the social implications of individual economic action emerged which proved remarkably useful for the development of social policy. Although the dissemination of this reform message influenced public opinion and put social reform on the political agenda, this book shows that Schmoller and his colleagues remained a beleaguered group, attacked from all political directions. It brings the fissures within German liberalism into sharp relief, revealing the persistence of a potent ideal of classlessness that fundamentally shaped German social policy. The author makes a unique and much-needed contribution to our understanding of the thought and milieu of Gustav Schmoller, the origins of social reform, and the development of the social sciences in Germany. The resulting volume addresses central questions in the historiography of the German Empire.
Bruce Caldwell
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- February 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780226091914
- eISBN:
- 9780226091921
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226091921.003.0004
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Economic History
This chapter discusses the Methodenstreit, the battle over methods between Carl Menger and Gustav Schmoller. It begins with an examination of the book that began the conflict, Menger's Investigations ...
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This chapter discusses the Methodenstreit, the battle over methods between Carl Menger and Gustav Schmoller. It begins with an examination of the book that began the conflict, Menger's Investigations into the Method of the Social Sciences. Menger's major goal was to show that, despite Schmoller's assertions to the contrary, a theoretical approach to the investigation of social phenomena is, indeed, possible. It shows that, although certain aspects of his defense of theory involved principles that are widely accepted today, other parts raised questions that would occupy many subsequent generations of students of methodology. Looking further into the book, the chapter identifies issues that reemerge in the debates that Hayek would have with opponents a half century later. Once the study of the Investigations is complete, it describes and reflects on the polemical battle that followed. Although Joseph Schumpeter's assessment that the conflict was a “history of wasted energies” has much truth to it, the struggle had important consequences for the development of both the German historical and the Austrian schools, at the time as well as in subsequent decades.Less
This chapter discusses the Methodenstreit, the battle over methods between Carl Menger and Gustav Schmoller. It begins with an examination of the book that began the conflict, Menger's Investigations into the Method of the Social Sciences. Menger's major goal was to show that, despite Schmoller's assertions to the contrary, a theoretical approach to the investigation of social phenomena is, indeed, possible. It shows that, although certain aspects of his defense of theory involved principles that are widely accepted today, other parts raised questions that would occupy many subsequent generations of students of methodology. Looking further into the book, the chapter identifies issues that reemerge in the debates that Hayek would have with opponents a half century later. Once the study of the Investigations is complete, it describes and reflects on the polemical battle that followed. Although Joseph Schumpeter's assessment that the conflict was a “history of wasted energies” has much truth to it, the struggle had important consequences for the development of both the German historical and the Austrian schools, at the time as well as in subsequent decades.
Raphaël Fèvre
- Published in print:
- 2022
- Published Online:
- October 2021
- ISBN:
- 9780197607800
- eISBN:
- 9780197607831
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780197607800.003.0003
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Economic History, History of Economic Thought
The second chapter shows that, in the eyes of ordoliberals, power is the source of an epistemological problem. Eucken tried to acquire a scientific understanding of the driving forces underlying the ...
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The second chapter shows that, in the eyes of ordoliberals, power is the source of an epistemological problem. Eucken tried to acquire a scientific understanding of the driving forces underlying the economic order, what he called the actual economic reality. His ambition rested on a method to escape the given and immediate aspects of the reality, which seemed contaminated by vested interests. Thus, Eucken updated the old German methodological quarrel (Methodenstreit). In order to resolve the great antinomy between theory and history, Eucken suggested articulating these two approaches by means of his theory of orders. Eucken aimed at applying theoretical analysis to the uses and abuses of power in the economy but without falling under the influence of the expression of vested interests.Less
The second chapter shows that, in the eyes of ordoliberals, power is the source of an epistemological problem. Eucken tried to acquire a scientific understanding of the driving forces underlying the economic order, what he called the actual economic reality. His ambition rested on a method to escape the given and immediate aspects of the reality, which seemed contaminated by vested interests. Thus, Eucken updated the old German methodological quarrel (Methodenstreit). In order to resolve the great antinomy between theory and history, Eucken suggested articulating these two approaches by means of his theory of orders. Eucken aimed at applying theoretical analysis to the uses and abuses of power in the economy but without falling under the influence of the expression of vested interests.
