Summary all schools in a table

School Main view of particular Flaws of school Economists in that
school school
Mercantilism - Businessmen - Not every country - Bodin
promoting self can have a positive - Mun
interest balance of trade - Petty
- Maximizing self- - Only looked at - Mandeville
interest is the goal nominal numbers - Hume
- Increasing bullion of - Very minimal wages - Cantillon
the nation as much in order to keep
as possible (through production high and
production) consumption low
- Positive balance of
trade overall
Physiocrats - Agriculture is the - Tended to lack - Quesnay
source of wealth: detail
labour and capital - Saw the economy as
only generate their a system superior to
own costs and net human will, rejected
product only comes government
from land. intervention posted
- Economy is by mercantilists
governed by natural - Very like-minded
laws because of one
- Inventors of Laissez- intellectual leader,
faire: No short period living
government and all in France.
intervention except
for taxation on
landowners
- Maximizing personal
gain is the goal
- Real forces lead to
economic
development
Classical - Laissez-faire: as little - Assumes economy - Smith
school government would always have - Mill
intervention as full employment of - Say
possible production - Bentham
- Not land but labour resources - Malthus
is the source of - No clear distinction - Ricardo
wealth  Ricardian between relative
Labour Theory of prices, general
Value and prices and changes
comparative in welfare
advantages through - Bentham: utility is
specialization subjective and
- Diminishing returns: cannot be

, if you increase only measured
one production objectively
factor while keeping - Doesn’t focus on
the others constant, the demand side of
the output will economics, only on
increase less the supply side.
- Harmony of
interests: being
selfish increases
total welfare
- Focus lays on the
supply side
Socialism - Rejecting classical - Human perfection - Marx
thoughts like Say’s being creatable is - Hegel
law, harmony of an unrealistic
interests and thought
laissez-faire, looks at - Utopia is an
optimal government unrealistic strive
behaviour (and if it and only works in
should exist at all) strict dictatorships
- Collectiveness of the - Marx: theories lack
society: entire theoretical and
society strived for technical analysis,
the same thing, tend toward vague
economists pleaded generalizations
for collective action
and shared
properties.
- Capitalism would
inevitably destroy
itself.
- Business cycles
(Marx)
- Darwinian approach
German - Empirical historical - You shouldn’t only - List
Historical analysis instead of use induction as a - Schmoller
school theories way of research - Weber
- Inductive approach - Empirical analysis
to economics doesn’t work for
- Emphasizes positive social sciences
role of government - Theories in
- Holistic approach: economics are
every part of useful and should
economics is not be disregarded
connected. as a whole
- Major player in the
Methodenstreit