A Note on Smuggling Sennett into the Economics Workshop

Abstract

This short note employs Sennett’s domain shifts with the sole purpose of illustrating the way in which concepts and tools from sociology can be employed by economists in a way that yields insights which are interesting and relevant to economics. Three domain shifts are attempted. Each attempt emphasizes a different view of economists: economists as makers of institutions, economists as makers of models and theories, and finally, economists as makers of their own original scholarly voices. The use of these three domain shifts serves as a case in point about how the economist’s methodological domain can be enriched through engagement with sociology.