Towards a new research programme for post-Keynesianism and neo-Ricardianism^∗

^∗Paper presented at the Second Review of Political Economy Conference, in Great Malvern, England, August 15–17, 1989. I would like to dedicate this article to my colleague Jacques Henry who passed away in June 1989 from a heart disease, at age 56. Reading again his article on post-Keynesian methods, I realized that he had answered there most of the relevant questions. I would also like to thank two anonymous referees for helpful comments on earlier versions of this article.

Abstract

An attempt is made to differentiate postclassical theory from neoclassical theory along broad essential elements. The main presuppositions of the neoclassical programme are an instrumentalist approach, an individualistic philosophy, and a view of economics which is based on the notions of scarcity and unbounded rationality. The postclassical programme, defined as the synthesis of post-Keynesianism and neo-Ricardianism, but which could also include institutionalist and radical contributions, relies on four opposite essentials: a realist approach, an organicist or holistic philosophy, and a vision of economics which is based on production and procedural rationality. It is concluded that for postclassical economics to offer a convincing alternative to mainstream economics, it should be expurgated of its Marshallian foundations, in particular those based on price substitution and standard demand and supply analysis. To propound a positive alternative, postclassical researchers would then rely mostly upon Kaleckian and Kaldorian foundations, which avoid by-products of scarcity analysis.

^∗Paper presented at the Second Review of Political Economy Conference, in Great Malvern, England, August 15–17, 1989. I would like to dedicate this article to my colleague Jacques Henry who passed away in June 1989 from a heart disease, at age 56. Reading again his article on post-Keynesian methods, I realized that he had answered there most of the relevant questions. I would also like to thank two anonymous referees for helpful comments on earlier versions of this article.

^∗Paper presented at the Second Review of Political Economy Conference, in Great Malvern, England, August 15–17, 1989. I would like to dedicate this article to my colleague Jacques Henry who passed away in June 1989 from a heart disease, at age 56. Reading again his article on post-Keynesian methods, I realized that he had answered there most of the relevant questions. I would also like to thank two anonymous referees for helpful comments on earlier versions of this article.

Notes

^∗Paper presented at the Second Review of Political Economy Conference, in Great Malvern, England, August 15–17, 1989. I would like to dedicate this article to my colleague Jacques Henry who passed away in June 1989 from a heart disease, at age 56. Reading again his article on post-Keynesian methods, I realized that he had answered there most of the relevant questions. I would also like to thank two anonymous referees for helpful comments on earlier versions of this article.