Working Paper: NBER ID: w21636
Authors: Ran Abramitzky
Abstract: I reflect on the role of modern economic history in economics. I document a substantial increase in the percentage of papers devoted to economic history in the top-5 economic journals over the last few decades. I discuss how the study of the past has contributed to economics by providing ground to test economic theory, improve economic policy, understand economic mechanisms, and answer big economic questions. Recent graduates in economic history appear to have roughly similar prospects to those of other economists in the economics job market. I speculate how the increase in availability of high quality micro level historical data, the decline in costs of digitizing data, and the use of computationally intensive methods to convert large-scale qualitative information into quantitative data might transform economic history in the future.
Keywords: Economic History; Economics; Historical Data
JEL Codes: B0; N0
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| the past (N93) | the present (Y20) |
| understanding the past (B15) | understanding the present (D84) |
| historical data (Y10) | natural experiments to test economic theories (C90) |
| availability of high-quality micro-level historical data (C81) | more rigorous testing of economic theories (C12) |
| understanding historical events (B15) | better economic policies today (E65) |
| increased economic history publications in top journals (N25) | positive trend in acceptance of economic history (N00) |