Albert Jolink, born in Zeist, the Netherlands, in 1962. Ph.D. from Erasmus University, Rotterdam. Assistant Professor of Philosophy and History of Economics at Erasmus University, Rotterdam.
Fellow (1 September 2000 – 30 June 2001)
During my stay at NIAS I elaborated my research on the life and works of the Dutch economist Jan Tinbergen. I tried to pinpoint his contribution to the striking shift that occurred in the history of economics, i.e. an increased focus on the statistical status of economic phenomena. I argue that Tinbergen’s contributions are embedded in a dynamic worldview in which economic relations are seen to co-determine political outcomes. This shift to a more statistical approach in economics is only gradually becoming apparent as researchers focus more on the econometric contributions of individual scholars. I hope that my study on Jan Tinbergen will further illuminate the impact of developments in economic theory in the first half of the twentieth century on present-day economics.