2 Quantitative Research in Economics: Historical
Backgrounds
Empirical analysis in economics has had a long and fertile history, the origins of which
can be traced at least as far back as the work of the 16th-century Political Arithmeticians
such asWilliam Petty, Gregory King and Charles Davenant. The political arithmeticians,
led by Sir William Petty, were the first group to make systematic use of facts and figures
in their studies. They were primarily interested in the practical issues of their time, ranging
from problems of taxation and money to those of international trade and finance.
The hallmark of their approach was undoubtedly quantitative and it was this which
distinguished them from the rest of their contemporaries. Although the political arithmeticians
were primarily and understandably preoccupied with statistical measurement
of economic phenomena, the work of Petty, and that of King in particular, represented
perhaps the first examples of a unified quantitative/theoretical approach to economics.
Indeed Schumpeter in his History of Economic Analysis (1954) goes as far as to say that
the works of the political arithmeticians ‘illustrate to perfection, what Econometrics is
and what Econometricians are trying to do’ (p. 209).
2 Quantitative Research in Economics: HistoricalBackgroundsEmpirical analysis in economics has had a long and fertile history, the origins of whichcan be traced at least as far back as the work of the 16th-century Political Arithmeticianssuch asWilliam Petty, Gregory King and Charles Davenant. The political arithmeticians,led by Sir William Petty, were the first group to make systematic use of facts and figuresin their studies. They were primarily interested in the practical issues of their time, rangingfrom problems of taxation and money to those of international trade and finance.The hallmark of their approach was undoubtedly quantitative and it was this whichdistinguished them from the rest of their contemporaries. Although the political arithmeticianswere primarily and understandably preoccupied with statistical measurementof economic phenomena, the work of Petty, and that of King in particular, representedperhaps the first examples of a unified quantitative/theoretical approach to economics.Indeed Schumpeter in his History of Economic Analysis (1954) goes as far as to say thatthe works of the political arithmeticians ‘illustrate to perfection, what Econometrics isand what Econometricians are trying to do’ (p. 209).
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