Leijonhufvud on New Keynesian Economics and the economics of Keynes

Abstract

Abstract The theme that Axel Leijonhufvud has extracted from the economics of Keynes is the potential for failures in the intertemporal coordination of activities in complex market systems. In his path-breaking book of 1968, he attacked standard Keynesian Economics for its view on frictions, which reduces the causes of macroeconomic pathologies to nominal rigidities. With the rise of DSGE-based New Keynesian Economics, Leijonhufvud has pointed out that ‘standard macroeconomics’ is still stuck in the frictions view. Referring to recent financial crises, he considers DSGE modelling to be hopelessly inadequate for dealing with such macroeconomic instability. Yet, the financial frictions literature in New Keynesian Economics claims to have found ways to incorporate financial crises into DSGE frameworks. The article describes continuity and change in Leijonhufvud’s critique of Old and New Keynesians, and assesses contrary claims to progress made in the DSGE world.