The main thesis is simple and obvious: people act rationally in order to maximize personal benefit and respond to relative price effects. This allows, the "economic approach", not just economic behavior in the narrow sense, but to explain human behavior in general. The input hypothesis is not considered in detail the mantra of orthodox economics, but of social science (s): "Economics is a social science" and - especially! - "Social science is economics." That this knowledge in the allied disciplines meets resistance seems to confirm the economic approach: Those who want to scold his chair already obsolete? The incentives are obvious.
But the reality is more complicated. It is possible the economic approach in an impressive way to explain observed effects later. There is something for every behavior either - in the definition of very flexible - benefits that can conduct rational and thus appear economically. Why did partout not fit into the system, summarily declared a negligible anomaly. Will act in hindsight everything is coherent, logical and rational, almost mandatory. This assumption is in contradiction to the findings of the modern (scientific) research behavior: People act rationally it was mostly, but far too often unwise to ignore this. Moreover, the subsequent explanations are suffering on a regular basis hindsight bias (so-called hindsight bias). Just select from the many possible parameters from those that support the economic theory of rational behavior in order to prove selbige Sun A self-fulfilling prophecy.
can ideally develop even a formula to describe the observed phenomenon abstract. In this "mathematization" of economic analysis, however, another danger: numbers do not lie, do not pursue special interests and are immune to political influence. In must not forget that - as just explained - are also any economic model assumptions, while not arbitrary, but are not per se true and correct, and certainly not free of value judgments. The mathematization however is the assertion of objective truth. A promise to redeem the economy remains guilty. Rather, this shield and sword of "economic imperialism", to which the allied disciplines to resist law.
So what remains? The economy is great, in the true sense to explain economic behavior of people. The alleged universal validity they can not claim, however. Economics is economics. Social science and social science.
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