The Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences was awarded on Monday to two American social scientists for their work in describing the numerous relationships within a company or among companies and individuals that shape market behavior.
The prize committee cited Elinor Ostrom, 76, at Indiana University, and Oliver E. Williamson, 77, at the University of California, Berkeley, for work done over long careers. Ms. Ostrom is the first woman to receive the economics prize in the 41-year history of the award. She is a political scientist, not an economist, and in honoring her, the judges seemed to suggest that economics should be thought of as an interdisciplinary field rather than a pure science governed by mathematics. …
The Nobel Prize in Economics is a bit questionable in terms of significance, and also legitimacy and is more properly referred to as “The Bank of Sweden Prize for Economics in Memory of Alfred Nobel.” Although it is not actually a Nobel Prize, the Nobel Foundation administers the prize along with the ‘real’ Nobel Prizes. Be that as it may, as long as it is going to be awarded, it’s nice to see a woman finally recognized.
–Ann Bartow
This is a really remarkable choice, not only because Ostrom is the first woman to be chosen in Econ, but also because both Ostrom and Williamson were recognized for work that is outside the narrow confines of orthodox economics. Great stuff.