The 2008 crisis falsified neoclassical economic theory yet elites kept using it.

Evidence

34. We note in particular how the crisis was at base a crisis of the “instruction sheet” of neoclassical economic theory. Indeed, the crisis itself can be considered a $13 trillion experiment on the robustness of these ideas, which begs a very important question. If these ideas were indeed falsified in the crisis, why are they still being used by financial and governmental elites to diagnose the crisis? — Mark Blyth, Austerity, 694

Categorization

• QUESTION: The question of why falsified ideas persist among elites is the book’s central puzzle — worth following how Blyth resolves it.
• XREF: connects to: The 2008 crisis was fundamentally a crisis of economic ideas — Mark Blyth, Austerity: The History of a Dangerous…, 132; The 2008 crisis was expected to falsify neoliberal doctrine but did not — Philip Mirowski, Never Let a Serious Crisis Go to Waste, 80; The 2008 crisis invalidated the preceding thirty years of financial orthodoxy — Mark Blyth, Austerity: The History of a Dangerous…, 133 (+1 more)

Broader Connections

• The 2008 crisis was fundamentally a crisis of economic ideas #expands (0.92) — Mark Blyth, Austerity, 132
• The 2008 crisis was expected to falsify neoliberal doctrine but did not #contradicts (0.90) — Philip Mirowski, Never Let a Serious Crisis Go to Waste, 80
• The 2008 crisis invalidated the preceding thirty years of financial orthodoxy #corroborates (0.88) — Mark Blyth, Austerity, 133
• Mainstream economists admit failure to predict the crisis but resist overhauling the discipline #corroborates (0.85) — Philip Mirowski, Never Let a Serious Crisis Go to Waste, 517