Working Paper: NBER ID: w18728
Authors: Roger Gordon; Gordon B. Dahl
Abstract: To what degree do economists disagree about key economic questions? To provide evidence, we make use of the responses to a series of questions posed to a distinguished panel of economists put together by the Chicago School of Business. Based on our analysis, we find a broad consensus on these many different economic issues, particularly when the past economic literature on the question is large. Any differences are unrelated to observable characteristics of the Panel members, other than men being slightly more likely to express an opinion. These differences are idiosyncratic, with no support for liberal vs. conservative camps.
Keywords: Economics; Consensus; Disagreement; Panel Study
JEL Codes: A11; H0; J0; Z18
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| amount of existing literature (C00) | level of consensus among economists (D70) |
| level of consensus among economists (D70) | probability of disagreement (D80) |
| amount of existing literature (C00) | probability of disagreement (D80) |
| prior beliefs (D80) | responses in absence of strong evidence (D91) |
| gender (J16) | expression of economic views (P19) |
| experience in Washington (I29) | expression of economic views (P19) |
| age of economists (B20) | expression of opinions (Y30) |