The Post-Keynesian School

Abstract

Previous chapters in this book have discussed the ideas of Keynes, Keynesians and new Keynesians. To many students, this may appear to be somewhat confusing at first. After all, why would economists spend so much energy insisting on distinguishing themselves between seemingly similar-sounding approaches, carrying seemingly similar names? Unfortunately, this chapter will only add to this confusion - at least initially - as we will discuss the ideas of another similar-sounding group, the "post"-Keynesians, which emerged in the mid-1950s to re-establish the ideas developed by Keynes following the efforts of the Keynesians to dilute them (as we will see, Polish economist Michał Kalecki also plays a central role). But as the chapter goes on, it will become clear how different post-Keynesians are from new or neo Keynesians. In fact, it proposes a very different vision of economics than the neoclassical or Keynesian approaches, which are based on individual micro behaviour and exchange. In contrast, post-Keynesian economics is based on the social process of the production of goods, which involves institutions and necessarily involves conflict between various groups at the heart of this process. Above all it involves banks and therefore can best be described as a monetary theory of production.