Facts, Values and Objectivity in Economics

European economists, sociologists, and philosophers grapple with whether and how economics is linked to ethical and political values. They met in March 2010 at the Centre for Social Studies with the intention of hammering out a consensus. The 10 essays here are the closest they could come after two years. Among their topics are economics and moral sentiments: the case of moral hazard, the conflicting languages of economics and human rights, the facts and values of experimental economics, the somatic subject and the changing political economy of life and health, and the Human Development Index as a case study of practical reasoning in economic affairs. Annotation Ac2012 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Jose Castro Caldas is a researcher at the Centre for Social Studies, Coimbra University, Portugal (CES). He was previously assistant professor at the Economics Department of ISCTE, Lisbon and researcher at DINAMIA.

Vitor Neves is Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Economics, Coimbra University, Portugal, and Senior Researcher at the Centre for Social Studies (CES). He is also member of the Stirling Centre for Economic Methodology (UK).