How to be Human* : *Though an Economist

Rating:
Summary: Read if Interested in What's Wrong with Economics Profession
Review: "Most of the essays in "How to Be Human Though an Economist" were published originally in Deirdre McClosky's regular column in the "Eastern Economic Journal." The material is sophisticated and serious but not technical, and many noneconomists will be able to follow along with difficulty. In a short review, it is impossible to summarize all the essays. In general, the book has to do with the economics profession - what McClosky thinks is wrong with it and how to fix it. Much of the material will be familiar to anyone who has read McClosky's earlier books - "The Rhetoric of Economists" (1985), "The Writing of Economics" (1986), and "The Vices of Economists; The Virtues of the Bourgeoisie" (1997). The essays are grouped loosely around basic suggestions that sounds like those in the latest self-help book: be yourself, be brave, be ethical, write better, read more."

"A large section of the book is devoted to McClosky's on-going and largely futile war on "statistical significance." McClosky is not the only critic of how empirical statistical research is conducted, but she is certainly the most vocal one. Every economist who has ever estimated a regression equation should read these essays."

-From "The Independent Review," Fall 2002

Rating:
Summary: Read if Interested in What's Wrong with Economics Profession
Review: "Most of the essays in "How to Be Human Though an Economist" were published originally in Deirdre McClosky's regular column in the "Eastern Economic Journal." The material is sophisticated and serious but not technical, and many noneconomists will be able to follow along with difficulty. In a short review, it is impossible to summarize all the essays. In general, the book has to do with the economics profession - what McClosky thinks is wrong with it and how to fix it. Much of the material will be familiar to anyone who has read McClosky's earlier books - "The Rhetoric of Economists" (1985), "The Writing of Economics" (1986), and "The Vices of Economists; The Virtues of the Bourgeoisie" (1997). The essays are grouped loosely around basic suggestions that sounds like those in the latest self-help book: be yourself, be brave, be ethical, write better, read more."

"A large section of the book is devoted to McClosky's on-going and largely futile war on "statistical significance." McClosky is not the only critic of how empirical statistical research is conducted, but she is certainly the most vocal one. Every economist who has ever estimated a regression equation should read these essays."

-From "The Independent Review," Fall 2002

Rating:
Summary: Great Light Reading on Heavy Topics
Review: This book is a collection of short articles published previously, all for the generalist economist. McCloskey skewers mainstream economics for its insular habits, woeful statistical techniques, and inability to change. I found all of the essays provocative. The style is chatty and conversational, and as McCloskey has interacted with many of the world's leading economists and Nobel laureates, it makes a great read. Highly recommended.