Behavioral Economics: A contribution to the critique of the instrumentalist methodological approach in Economics.
This paper seeks to analyze the construction of Behavioral Economy and the current state of the art in this field. Behavioral Economics is broadly understood as: (1) a response to the appropriation of the propositions of logical empiricism in the economic thinking; and (2) a critique of the lack of relationship between economic theory and the contributions of other social sciences. From the methodological perspective, which seeks to understand the critique of the appropriation of the propositions of logical empiricism by the economic thinking, we seek to understand some of the various ways proposed by behavioral economists to improve economic theory. After a brief review of the methodological construction of economic science, focusing on the appropriations of the contributions of the philosophy of science offered by economists, we present different contributions and criticisms of some behavioral economists regarding the subject. At first glance, the main objective will be the understanding of the works of the New Behavioral Economy, such as those of Kahneman, Tversky, Thaler, Loewenstein, Camerer, Rabin, Bowles, Laibson, Akerlof and others, trying to understand the success of their propositions. The analysis of some contributions from the “old” behavioral economists helps to establish the determining factors of such success from the approach proposed by the New Behavioral Economy. In this sense, we seek to understand the differences and the fundamentals of the scope of the contributions of Behavioral Economics under a methodological aspect. Finally, we seek to understand if there would be any “cost” involved in the partially occurring economic appropriation of contributions from the field and what are the possible paths for future developments in the field of Behavioral Economics.