On the need for professional economic ethics

Hey, guys. I would like to talk about a little boring topic, which is economics. Have you ever thought that economists are just a swindler? Economists are paid a lot and all they do seems to analize the economic situation, but no one predicted the sub-prime morgage in 2007. I remember that many people criticized economics and questioned what economics can do at that time. Some people said economists are not capable of predicting economics and some said economists are just supporting Wall Streeters and big companys which are paying them. As one of students who are studying Economics, I've always wondered if economics is doing the right thing for a society. Meanwhile I noticed a poster declaiming that "Manqiw is a lier" (I suppose most of students ever heard of this name because he's the author of the best selling the principle of economics) The poster was fixed by "Capitalism Forum", a student organization. If they're right, I've just learned lies for 3 years. I think they're also a bit extreme. Economists can be selfish and work for big banks and companys rather than people, but I think economics itself is for social welfare. Economics is not lying, but obviously still have a long way to go. What do you think? Do you think that economics contribute to our society?

I attach a part of an article from the Economist, which helped me organize my thoughts

All this is to the good, and long overdue. Not because economists are typically crooks or shills for outside interests, though there are some of those just as in every other profession. But because most economists are trying to do good work in a field where they enjoy extraordinary influence, their interventions generally harm some while benefitting others, and things can go very wrong in unpredictable ways. And so while it is important that the AEA and other economic associations take steps to address conflicts of interest among their members—and while publications like the Economist should as a matter of course begin to demand full disclosure from those economists who appear in its pages and on its blogs—economists and non-economists alike should press for something much more ambitious. We need a new field of inquiry into the many ethical issues that arise in the context of economic practice, including the risk of causing harm; the role conflict that arises when an economist serves an institution with an agenda that conflicts with the public good; the virtues that are required of the ethical economist; and so forth. And perhaps most difficult of all for a profession that has worked so hard to achieve influence, we need to consider our obligation to convey to our students and to the public not just the capacities but also the limitations of economics, and of economists.

Jan6 2011 by George DeMartino