Question A:
Adam Smith’s metaphor of the invisible hand has been foundational to the development of modern economic theory.
Responses
Responses weighted by each expert's confidence
Question B:
Adam Smith’s metaphor of the invisible hand has been commonly misinterpreted as advocacy for pure laissez-faire capitalism.
Responses
Responses weighted by each expert's confidence
Question A Participant Responses
Participant | University | Vote | Confidence | Bio/Vote History |
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Franklin Allen |
Imperial College London | Bio/Vote History | ||
Adam Smith's idea of the invisible hand of the market is arguably the most important in economic theory.
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Pol Antras |
Harvard | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Olivier Blanchard |
Peterson Institute | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Nicholas Bloom |
Stanford | Bio/Vote History | ||
Yes, but there is much more to Adam Smith that just the invisible hand, like all good Scots. Indeed there is much more to haggis than just a nasty appearance and a horrible taste :-)
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Richard William Blundell |
University College London | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
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Maristella Botticini |
Bocconi | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Agnès Bénassy-Quéré |
Paris School of Economics | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Elena Carletti |
Bocconi | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Jean-Pierre Danthine |
Paris School of Economics | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Paul De Grauwe |
LSE | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Jan Eeckhout |
UPF Barcelona | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Ernst Fehr |
Universität Zurich | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Xavier Freixas |
Barcelona GSE | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
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Nicola Fuchs-Schündeln |
Goethe-Universität Frankfurt | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Jordi Galí |
Barcelona GSE | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
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Yuriy Gorodnichenko |
Berkeley | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Rachel Griffith |
University of Manchester | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
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Veronica Guerrieri |
Chicago Booth | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
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Luigi Guiso |
Einaudi Institute for Economics and Finance | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Sergei Guriev |
Sciences Po | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Patrick Honohan |
Trinity College Dublin | Bio/Vote History | ||
Although Smith knew that the hand is sometimes visible.
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Beata Javorcik |
University of Oxford | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Jan Pieter Krahnen |
Goethe University Frankfurt | Bio/Vote History | ||
The metaphor has been enormously helpful to spark interest, curiosity and also: fierce opposition to the idea that, under certain conditions, markets aggregate information and allow decentralized action to be coordinated. While important and effective, it is not foundational,
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Botond Kőszegi |
Central European University | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Eliana La Ferrara |
Harvard Kennedy | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
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Christian Leuz |
Chicago Booth | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Thierry Mayer |
Sciences-Po | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Costas Meghir |
Yale | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
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Marco Pagano |
Università di Napoli Federico II | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Lubos Pastor |
Chicago Booth | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Torsten Persson |
Stockholm University | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
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Christopher Pissarides |
London School of Economics and Political Science | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
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Richard Portes |
London Business School | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
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Canice Prendergast |
Chicago Booth | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Carol Propper |
Imperial College London | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Imran Rasul |
University College London | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Lucrezia Reichlin |
London Business School | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Ricardo Reis |
London School of Economics | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Rafael Repullo |
CEMFI | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Hélène Rey |
London Business School | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
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Antoinette Schoar |
MIT | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
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Kjetil Storesletten |
University of Minnesota | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Daniel Sturm |
London School of Economics | Bio/Vote History | ||
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John Van Reenen |
LSE | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Rick Van der Ploeg |
Oxford | Bio/Vote History | ||
Smith and later Hayek have shown us the importance of using markets rather than Stalinist planning. And of course the Arrow-Debreu-Hahn theory of general equilibrium is taught to all students.
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John Vickers |
Oxford | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Hans-Joachim Voth |
University of Zurich | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Karl Whelan |
University College Dublin | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
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Charles Wyplosz |
The Graduate Institute Geneva | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Question B Participant Responses
Participant | University | Vote | Confidence | Bio/Vote History |
---|---|---|---|---|
Franklin Allen |
Imperial College London | Bio/Vote History | ||
Market failures are by now fairly well understood.
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Pol Antras |
Harvard | Bio/Vote History | ||
Much in the Wealth of Nations is inconsistent with the notion that laissez-faire is the optimal policy in all markets.
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Olivier Blanchard |
Peterson Institute | Bio/Vote History | ||
There are few truly competitive markets in modern economies.
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Nicholas Bloom |
Stanford | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Richard William Blundell |
University College London | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
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Maristella Botticini |
Bocconi | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
||||
Agnès Bénassy-Quéré |
Paris School of Economics | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
||||
Elena Carletti |
Bocconi | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
||||
Jean-Pierre Danthine |
Paris School of Economics | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
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Paul De Grauwe |
LSE | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Jan Eeckhout |
UPF Barcelona | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
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Ernst Fehr |
Universität Zurich | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
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Xavier Freixas |
Barcelona GSE | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
|
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Nicola Fuchs-Schündeln |
Goethe-Universität Frankfurt | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
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Jordi Galí |
Barcelona GSE | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
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Yuriy Gorodnichenko |
Berkeley | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
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Rachel Griffith |
University of Manchester | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
|
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Veronica Guerrieri |
Chicago Booth | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
|
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Luigi Guiso |
Einaudi Institute for Economics and Finance | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Sergei Guriev |
Sciences Po | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Patrick Honohan |
Trinity College Dublin | Bio/Vote History | ||
But not by thoughtful economists...
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Beata Javorcik |
University of Oxford | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Jan Pieter Krahnen |
Goethe University Frankfurt | Bio/Vote History | ||
At least this is the way how it is typically used in today's press: as evidently false...
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Botond Kőszegi |
Central European University | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
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Eliana La Ferrara |
Harvard Kennedy | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
|
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Christian Leuz |
Chicago Booth | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
||||
Thierry Mayer |
Sciences-Po | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
||||
Costas Meghir |
Yale | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
|
||||
Marco Pagano |
Università di Napoli Federico II | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
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Lubos Pastor |
Chicago Booth | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
||||
Torsten Persson |
Stockholm University | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
|
||||
Christopher Pissarides |
London School of Economics and Political Science | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
|
||||
Richard Portes |
London Business School | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
|
||||
Canice Prendergast |
Chicago Booth | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
||||
Carol Propper |
Imperial College London | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
||||
Imran Rasul |
University College London | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
||||
Lucrezia Reichlin |
London Business School | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
||||
Ricardo Reis |
London School of Economics | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
||||
Rafael Repullo |
CEMFI | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
||||
Hélène Rey |
London Business School | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
|
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Antoinette Schoar |
MIT | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
|
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Kjetil Storesletten |
University of Minnesota | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
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Daniel Sturm |
London School of Economics | Bio/Vote History | ||
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John Van Reenen |
LSE | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Rick Van der Ploeg |
Oxford | Bio/Vote History | ||
Adam Smith both in the Wealth of Nations and in the Theory of Moral Sentiments has warned for market failures and inequalities which need to be corrected.
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John Vickers |
Oxford | Bio/Vote History | ||
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Hans-Joachim Voth |
University of Zurich | Bio/Vote History | ||
|
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Karl Whelan |
University College Dublin | Did Not Answer | Bio/Vote History | |
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Charles Wyplosz |
The Graduate Institute Geneva | Bio/Vote History | ||
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