Premium
Randomising Development: Geography, Economics and the Search for Scientific Rigour
Author(s) -
Webber Sophie
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
tijdschrift voor economische en sociale geografie
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.766
H-Index - 55
eISSN - 1467-9663
pISSN - 0040-747X
DOI - 10.1111/tesg.12086
Subject(s) - rigour , innovator , argumentation theory , positive economics , human development theory , economics education , applied economics , economic methodology , economics , philosophy and economics , regional science , neoclassical economics , management science , social science , mainstream economics , sociology , epistemology , economic growth , higher education , entrepreneurship , finance , philosophy , philosophy education
Development economics has become something of an innovator within the discipline of economics, due to its adoption of experimental and statistical analysis techniques. In this paper I give examples of this new trend in development economics: randomised‐control trials, natural experiments, specialist analytical techniques like pre‐analysis plans, and evidence‐driven policy evaluation. I explore this novel experimental development economics in conversation with current argumentation in economic/development geography about economics. I do this in order to ask whether this experimental trend responds to any of these geographical critiques. Although I find that this new development economics repeats many of the tendencies of economics that geographers find so specious, it does pose challenges to economic/development geography, which I explore.