‘Why is Economics not an Evolutionary Science’ was written in 1898 and is a very significant paper. It called into question the premise that the physics of equilibrium thermodynamics is pertinent to analyzing economic systems; indeed it called into question the premise that economic systems do, indeed, tend to equilibrium. This is in contrast to his contemporary, Walras (1874), who expressed the view, in ‘Elements of Pure Economics’, that “…this pure theory of economics is a science which resembles the physico-mathematical sciences in every respect.” Veblen, in contrast, suggested that the only rational approach is to assume economies evolve; otherwise, he argues, we can describe the economy but have no effective theory of change and development.

Evolutionary Economics is the Only Rational Proposition Veblen starts by asserting that (all) modern sciences are evolutionary sciences (p. 374). Having given the intellectual high ground to evolution, he states that economics is “helplessly behind the times in not being evolutionary” (p. 373). From the perspective of 2010, this is fascinating.

http://emergentpublications.com/ECO/ECO_other/Issue_12_2_6_CP.pdf?AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1