The Changing Relationships of Economics and Economic Geography

Abstract

T . nHE vigorous growth of geography will be stimulated and enhanced by clarification of its relationships with a sister discipline, economics. These relationships are not self-evident, despite the avowed common interest in phenomena. This fact has been noted by many geographers, including Wooldridge and East,' Stamp,2 Finch,3 Murphy4, and Fisher.5 Some geographers have discussed not only existing relationships but also what they believe these relationships ought to become. Ballabon6 wants a more economic geography while Lukermann7 urges a more geographic geography. What sort of relationships should geographers try to develop with economics? Or, to put the matter differently, how much economics can geographers use? purpose of this paper is to throw light on these questions by examining the historically changing relationships of the two fields in terms of disciplinary central problems and their changing social setting. This article is concerned with central problems rather than with disciplinary definitions. Central problems have been described as disciplinary cores,8 core topics, and target centers.9 These are the questions that geographers or economists seek to unravel and to answer. They have a clarity and precision normally lacking in definitions. To be inclusive, definitions must be so broad and so generalized that they often conceal more than they reveal. At best, definitions are static descriptions, while central problems reveal the direction of disciplinary growth. starting point for any discipline is the clear perception of a problem; the field grows as a meth1 S. W. Wooldridge and W. G. East: The Spirit and Purpose of London, 1951, pp. 103-120. 2 J. C. Stamp: and Theory, Vol. 22, 1937, pp. 1-13. 3 V. C. Finch: Training for Research in Geography, Annals Assn. of Amer. Geogrs., Vol. 24, 1944, pp. 207-215. 4Raymond E. Murphy: The Fields of American Geography: Inventory and Prospect (James and Jones, Edits.), Syracuse, 1954, pp. 240-245. ,'C. A. Fisher: Economic Geography in a Changing World, Trans. and Papers of the Inst. of Brit. Geogrs., 1948, pp. 69-85. 6 M. B. Ballabon: P cutting the 'Economic' into Econ. Geogr., Vol. 33, 1957, pp. 217-223. 7 F. Lukermann: Toward a More Geographic Prof. Geogr., Vol. 10, 1958, pp. 2-10. 8 Nevin Fenneman: The Circumference of Geography, Annals. Assn. Amer. Geogrs., Vol. 9, 1919, pp. 3-11. 9 Edward L. Ullman: Human Geography and Area Research, Annals Assn. Amer. Geogrs., Vol. 43, 1953, pp. 54 and 56.