--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Recognizing that the boundaries of the…" description: "\"“Recognizing that the boundaries of the market are ambiguous and cannot be determined in an objective way lets us realize that economics is not a scien..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/822/ha-joon-chang-3497_economics_recognizing-that-the-boundaries-of-the-m_694344.jpg" --- # Recognizing that the boundaries of the market are… ![“Recognizing that the boundaries of the market are ambiguous and cannot be determined in an objective way lets us realize that economics is not a science like physics or chemistry, but a political exercise. Free-market economists may want you to believe that the correct boundaries of the market can…” quote by Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/822/ha-joon-chang-3497_economics_recognizing-that-the-boundaries-of-the-m_694344.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/822/ha-joon-chang-3497_economics_recognizing-that-the-boundaries-of-the-m_694344.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/822/ha-joon-chang-3497_economics_recognizing-that-the-boundaries-of-the-m_694344.jpg) > ““Recognizing that the boundaries of the market are ambiguous and cannot be determined in an objective way lets us realize that economics is not a science like physics or chemistry, but a political exercise. Free-market economists may want you to believe that the correct boundaries of the market can be scientifically determined, but this is incorrect. If the boundaries of what you are studying cannot be scientifically determined, what you are doing is not a science.”” [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Economic boundaries are socially constructed, not objectively measurable, making economics a political practice. **In simple terms:** Economics is political, not a hard science. Key Takeaway Recognize economics' political nature. Themes economics politics methodology Mood analytical critical Type academic philosophical When to use this quote - policy analysis - academic debate - public discourse - education Key Concepts social constructivism philosophy of science Questions to Reflect On - What political values shape market rules? - How can we improve economic decision‑making? A Different Perspective Hard data cannot resolve all economic questions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Economics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/economics/) [Free market](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/free-market/) [Investing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/investing/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) ## Related quotes > [“An older generation of free market economists used to point out that what is wrong with socialist planning is that it requires the sort…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-judt/an-older-generation-of-free-market-economists-used-to-point-out-that/) [Tony Judt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-judt/) > [“The problem for free-market economists is that their policy recommendations at the dawn of a recession are not too sexy to the political mindset.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-westley/the-problem-for-free-market-economists-is-that-their-policy/) Christopher Westley > [Contrary to what professional economists will typically tell you, economics is not a science. All economic theories have underlying political and ethical assumptions, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/contrary-to-what-professional-economists-will-typically-tell-you/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) > [“We used to think God made us in His image, and that meant we were special, until science told us we just evolved that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-roberts/we-used-to-think-god-made-us-in-his-image-and-that-meant-we-were/) [Adam Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-roberts/) > [Economics has never been a science - and it is even less now than a few years ago.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-samuelson/economics-has-never-been-a-science-and-it-is-even-less-now-than-a-few/) [Paul Samuelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-samuelson/) > [“Economics is not a science and should not be there to advise policy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/economics-is-not-a-science-and-should-not-be-there-to-advise-policy/) [Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/) > [It is clear that economics, if it is to be a science at all, must be a mathematical science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-stanley-jevons/it-is-clear-that-economics-if-it-is-to-be-a-science-at-all-must-be-a-2/) [William Stanley Jevons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-stanley-jevons/) > [Economics is not a science; it is a quasi-religion: part superstition, part mystique, part sentimentality. Bankers dream like other men, the only difference being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/economics-is-not-a-science-it-is-a-quasi-religion-part-superstition/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [What is economics? A science invented by the upper class in order to acquire the fruits of the labor of the underclass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-strindberg/what-is-economics-a-science-invented-by-the-upper-class-in-order-to/) [August Strindberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-strindberg/) > [A loving and fierce defense of economics as a science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-krulwich/a-loving-and-fierce-defense-of-economics-as-a-science/) [Robert Krulwich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-krulwich/) > [Economics is not a science, in the sense that a policy can be repeatedly applied under similar conditions and will repeatedly produce similar results.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/millicent-fenwick/economics-is-not-a-science-in-the-sense-that-a-policy-can-be/) [Millicent Fenwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/millicent-fenwick/) > [Economics is the science which studies human behaviour as a relationship between ends and scarce means which have alternative uses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lionel-charles-robbins/economics-is-the-science-which-studies-human-behaviour-as-a/) Lionel Charles Robbins > [It is clear that Economics, if it is to be a science at all, must be a mathematical science ... simply because it deals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-stanley-jevons/it-is-clear-that-economics-if-it-is-to-be-a-science-at-all-must-be-a/) [William Stanley Jevons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-stanley-jevons/) > [Many of us like to think of financial economics as a science, but complex events like the financial crisis suggest that this conceit may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lo/many-of-us-like-to-think-of-financial-economics-as-a-science-but/) [Andrew Lo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lo/) > [The history of capitalism has been so totally re-written that many people in the rich world do not perceive the historical double standards involved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/the-history-of-capitalism-has-been-so-totally-re-written-that-many/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) ## More by Ha-Joon Chang > [“In no country does the average income give the right picture of how people live but in a country with higher inequality it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/in-no-country-does-the-average-income-give-the-right-picture-of-how/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) > [Sometimes people with strong ideology, whether left-wing or right-wing, refuse to do something simply because they believe it is wrong, when doing it actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/sometimes-people-with-strong-ideology-whether-left-wing-or-right-wing/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) > [Every market has some rules and boundaries that restrict freedom of choice. A market looks free only because we so unconditionally accept its underlying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/every-market-has-some-rules-and-boundaries-that-restrict-freedom-of/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) > [Indeed, willingness to challenge professional economists and other experts is a foundation stone of democracy. If all we have to do is to listen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/indeed-willingness-to-challenge-professional-economists-and-other/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) > [If we are really serious about preventing another crisis like the 2008 meltdown we should simply ban complex financial instruments, unless they can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/if-we-are-really-serious-about-preventing-another-crisis-like-the/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) > [“Harry S. Truman, in his typical no-nonsense style, once said that ‘An expert is someone who doesn’t want to learn anything new, because then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/harry-s-truman-in-his-typical-no-nonsense-style-once-said-that-an/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) > [Rational thinking is an important aspect of human nature, but we have imagination, we have ambition, we have irrational fear, we are swayed by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/rational-thinking-is-an-important-aspect-of-human-nature-but-we-have/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) > [The history of capitalism has been so totally re-written that many people in the rich world do not perceive the historical double standards involved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/the-history-of-capitalism-has-been-so-totally-re-written-that-many/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) > [Equality of opportunity is meaningless for those who do not have the capabilities to take advantage of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/equality-of-opportunity-is-meaningless-for-those-who-do-not-have-the/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) > [The higher education system in these countries (US, Korea etc) has become like a theatre in which some people decided to stand to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/the-higher-education-system-in-these-countries-us-korea-etc-has/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) > [What free-market economists are not telling us is that the politics they want to get rid of are none other than those of democracy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/what-free-market-economists-are-not-telling-us-is-that-the-politics/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) > [ “Joseph Schumpeter emphasized that all analysis in economics is preceded by a pre-analytical cognitive act, called vision, in which the analyst ‘visualise\[s\] a distinct… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/joseph-schumpeter-emphasized-that-all-analysis-in-economics-is/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) > [“All technical professionals have an incentive to make themselves look more complicated than they are so that they can justify the high fees their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/all-technical-professionals-have-an-incentive-to-make-themselves-look/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) > [I'm not an anti-capitalist, or anarchist. I want capitalism to work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/i-m-not-an-anti-capitalist-or-anarchist-i-want-capitalism-to-work/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) > [“all technical professions have an incentive to make themselves look more complicated than they really are so that they can justify the high fees…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/all-technical-professions-have-an-incentive-to-make-themselves-look/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) [Explore all 129 Ha-Joon Chang quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) ## More Economics quotes > [Don't let's lose sight of what creates wealth. It is open markets, it is capitalism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-murdoch/don-t-let-s-lose-sight-of-what-creates-wealth-it-is-open-markets-it/) [Rupert Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-murdoch/) > [Crony capitalism is essentially a condition in which... public officials are giving favours to people in the private sector in payment of political favours.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-greenspan/crony-capitalism-is-essentially-a-condition-in-which-public-officials/) [Alan Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-greenspan/) > [Our biggest challenge is to eliminate the popular perception that economists don't have anything useful to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-zandi/our-biggest-challenge-is-to-eliminate-the-popular-perception-that/) [Mark Zandi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-zandi/) > [Advances in technology will continue to reach far into every sector of our economy. Future job and economic growth in industry, defense, transportation, agriculture,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-bond/advances-in-technology-will-continue-to-reach-far-into-every-sector/) [Christopher Bond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-bond/) > [Our engagement through international economics, trade, these trade agreements, is vital and is linked to our national security. This is a lesson we learned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-boustany/our-engagement-through-international-economics-trade-these-trade/) [Charles Boustany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-boustany/) > [“The free-market economy and globalisation process have brought about, in the late twentieth and early twenty-first century, a sharp and sudden rise in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yaakov-malkin/the-free-market-economy-and-globalisation-process-have-brought-about/) Yaakov Malkin > [“Everything economic science posits as given, that is, the range of dispositions of the economic agent which ground the illusion of the ahistorical universality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-bourdieu/everything-economic-science-posits-as-given-that-is-the-range-of/) [Pierre Bourdieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-bourdieu/) > [Politics is about power. It is about the power of the state. It is about the power of the state as applied to individuals,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-rudd/politics-is-about-power-it-is-about-the-power-of-the-state-it-is/) [Kevin Rudd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-rudd/) > [Having an economy that works for the 99% is achievable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winnie-byanyima/having-an-economy-that-works-for-the-99-is-achievable/) [Winnie Byanyima](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winnie-byanyima/) > [“a select group of high-performing companies have managed to close the strategy-to-performance gap through better planning and execution. These companies—Barclays, Cisco Systems, Dow Chemical,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-c-mankins/a-select-group-of-high-performing-companies-have-managed-to-close-the/) [Michael C. Mankins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-c-mankins/) > [The system of private property is the most important guaranty of freedom, not only for those who own property, but scarcely less for those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/the-system-of-private-property-is-the-most-important-guaranty-of/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [Economists think about what people ought to do. Psychologists watch what they actually do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-kahneman/economists-think-about-what-people-ought-to-do-psychologists-watch/) [Daniel Kahneman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-kahneman/) > [The politician attempts to remedy the evil by increasing the very thing that caused the evil in the first place: legal plunder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-bastiat/the-politician-attempts-to-remedy-the-evil-by-increasing-the-very/) [Frederic Bastiat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-bastiat/) > [“Economists have a singular method of procedure. There are only two kinds of institutions for them, artificial and natural. The institutions of feudalism are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-marx/economists-have-a-singular-method-of-procedure-there-are-only-two/) [Karl Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-marx/) > [As the variable capital always stays in the hands of the capitalist in some form or other, it cannot be claimed in any way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-marx/as-the-variable-capital-always-stays-in-the-hands-of-the-capitalist/) [Karl Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-marx/) [Browse all 7,788 Economics quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/economics/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Recognizing that the boundaries of the market are ambiguous and cannot be determined in an objective way lets us realize that economics is not a science like physics or chemistry, but a political exercise. Free-market economists may want you to believe that the correct boundaries of the market can be scientifically determined, but this is incorrect. If the boundaries of what you are studying cannot be scientifically determined, what you are doing is not a science.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ha-Joon Chang" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/recognizing-that-the-boundaries-of-the-market-are-ambiguous-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Economics" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/recognizing-that-the-boundaries-of-the-market-are-ambiguous-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/822/ha-joon-chang-3497_economics_recognizing-that-the-boundaries-of-the-m_694344.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/822/ha-joon-chang-3497_economics_recognizing-that-the-boundaries-of-the-m_694344.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/822/ha-joon-chang-3497_economics_recognizing-that-the-boundaries-of-the-m_694344.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Recognizing that the boundaries of the market are ambiguous and cannot be determined in an objective way…” — Ha-Joon Chang", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Ha-Joon Chang", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Recognizing that the boundaries of the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/recognizing-that-the-boundaries-of-the-market-are-ambiguous-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/recognizing-that-the-boundaries-of-the-market-are-ambiguous-and/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```