Research work · 2015
Complexity and Austrian Economics
J. Barkley Rosser
The Oxford Handbook of Austrian Economics
Abstract
There is a deep link between complexity economics and Austrian economics. Ideas of complexity were foundational in the work of Austrian economics from its generally recognized beginnings in the work of Carl Menger to the modern day, with Friedrich Hayek being probably the most important carrier of this theme in the school. Although interest in complexity economics among Austrians has waxed and waned over time, today such ideas are quite influential in the work of many Austrian economists. This chapter discusses the varieties of economic complexity and the connection with the Austrian school of economics from Menger to Hayek, as well as more recent developments of Austrian views on complexity.