Includes index.

Contents: Introduction: The central focus of modern economic thought -- Our approach to the history of economic thought -- The role of heterodox economics -- The problems of presenting diversity -- Methodological issues -- Benefits to be gained from the study of the history of economic thought -- The profession of economics and its methodology -- The spread of economic ideas -- The evolution of methodological thought -- Preclassical economics: Early preclassical economic thought: Important writers -- Some broad generalizations -- Non-western economic thought -- Greek thought -- Arab-islamic thought -- Scholasticism -- Mercantilism, physiocracy, and other precursors of classical economic thought: Important writers -- Mercantilism -- Influential precursors of classical thought -- Physiocracy -- Spanish economic thought -- Classical economic thought, and its critics: Important writers -- Classical political economy -- Marx's political economy -- Adam Smith: The breadth of Adam Smith -- Smith's analysis of markets and policy conclusions -- The nature and causes of the wealth of nations -- International trade -- Value theory -- Distribution theory -- Welfare and the general level of prices -- Ricardo and Malthus: David Ricardo-A theorist's theorist -- The malthusian population doctrine -- Ricardo: Method, policy, scope -- Ricardo's model -- Ricardo's theory of land rent -- Ricardo's value theory -- Ricardian distribution theory -- Comparative advantage -- Stability and growth in a capitalistic economy -- J. S. Mill and the decline of classical economics: Post-ricardian developments -- J.S. Mill: The background of his thought -- Millian economics -- Karl Marx and his critique of classical economics: An overview of Marx -- Marx's economic theories -- Marx's analysis of capitalism -- Neoclassical economic thought and its critics: Jevons, Menger, and the foundations of marginal analysis: Important writers -- Historical links -- Jevons, Menger, and Walras -- Second-generation Austrians -- The transition to neoclassical economics: Marginal analysis extended: Important writers -- Marginal analysis extended : The second generation -- Marginal productivity theory -- Profits and interest -- Alfred Marshall and neoclassical economics: Marshall's claim to being the father of neoclassicism -- Walra's and general equilibrium theory: Walra's general equilibrium system -- Vilfredo Pareto -- Institutional and historical critics of neoclassical economics: important writers -- Methodological controversy -- Thorstein Veblen -- Wesley Clair Mitchell -- John R. Commons -- John A. Hobson -- Austrian critique of neoclassical economics and the debate about socialism and capitalism: Important writers -- Defining capitalism and socialism -- The emergence of capitalistic thought -- The evolution of austrian thought -- The development of socialist economic thought -- The debate concerning economic systems -- Modern economics and its critics: The state of modern economics -- The structure of part four -- The development of modern microeconomic theory: Important writers -- The movement away from marshalllian economics -- The formalist revolution in microeconomics -- Milton friedman and the chicago approach to economics -- Problems with modern applied econonics -- A comparison of neoclassical and modern microeconomics -- The development of modern macroeconomic thought: Important writers -- Historical forerunners of modern macroeconomics -- Keynesian macroeconomics -- Modern macroeconomics -- The development of econometrics and empirical methods in economics: Important writers -- Empirical economics -- Neoclassical economics and empirical analysis -- Macroeconomics and empirical analysis -- The rise of econometrics -- The fall from scientific grace of macroeconomics -- Bayesian economics -- Experimental economists -- The development of modern heterodox economic thought: Important writers -- Radicals -- Modern institutionalists, quasi-institutionalists, and neoinstitutionalists -- Quasi-institutionalists -- Noeonstitutionalists -- Post-keynesians -- Public choice advocates -- Austrian economics -- Other heterodox economic groups -- Summary.