ESHS/HSS Annual Meeting

The Functions of Book Reviews in Economics: The Case of Three Essays on the State of Economic Science by Tjalling C. Koopmans (1958)

• In Event: Book Reviewing and (Inter)disciplinarity in Postwar Science

English Abstract

This paper examines the functions of book reviews in economics. Since most book reviews provide a description, an analysis, and an appraisal of a book’s content, their primary function is to highlight the book’s existence, to encourage or discourage readership, and to offer post-publication peer review. Book reviews also facilitate knowledge transfer across languages, disciplines, and audiences. Moreover, for reviewers, writing a book review can serve as a way to signal their expertise to peers, to defend their ideas and positions, to supplement their income, or to expand their personal library. For authors and publishers, reviews provide feedback and visibility. For journals, book reviews can serve as a means to promote specific ideas, to attract readers interested in reviews, to build connections with scholars, and to publicize books by authors associated with the journal. This presentation focuses on a case study of Three Essays on the State of Economic Science by Tjalling C. Koopmans (1958). Beyond showing how reviews of this book, published in economics and related disciplinary journals, illustrate these various functions, the case study specifically examines how book reviews operate as a forum for identifying and delineating the boundaries of the economics discipline.

Author

• Julien Gradoz, CLHDPP, Université Jean Moulin Lyon 3