This book discusses the work of German economists Gustav von Schmoller and Adolph Wagner, its influence on the tradition of German and Austrian economic and social thought, and its implications for the discipline today. Schmoller and Wagner integrated philosophical, historical, sociological and political approaches into the science of economics, focusing specifically on economic development. Schmoller, who is considered the head of the second generation of the German Historical School, argued that general propositions of economic theory had to be based on historical-empirical studies. In contrast, Wagner was a systematologist who preferred to start his investigations into economic problems from abstract principles. Schmoller and Wagner share, however, a common focus on institutions and the role of the state; Wagner favored state policy initiatives, while Schmoller was concerned with the risks of state policy failure. One hundred years after their deaths, the contributions to this booklook into their approach, trace the influence of their ideas, and explore the relevance of their thought in a global economy.  This book will be useful for students and scholars interested in socio-economics, the history of economic thought, economic policy, and political science.  

Juergen Backhaus acquired his diploma in Economics, Management Sciences and Political Sciences in Konstanz in 1973, where he also achieved his licentiate degree in Law in 1976 and did his doctorate under Gerard Gäfgen in 1985. From 1986, Juergen Backhaus was a professor of Public Finance at the University of Maastricht. Since March 1994, he publishes the European Journal of Law and Economics. Since 2001 he holds the Krupp Foundation Chair in Public Finance and Fiscal Sociology at the University of Erfurt. Juergen Backhaus was announced honorary doctor of the University of Thessaly in 2004.

Introduction.- Chapter 1: Gustav Schmoller's Program and its Valuation Today and Tomorrow.- Chapter 2: Gustav von Schmoller's Influence in the Netherlands 1870-1940 - A Forgotten Economist?.- Chapter 3: German Roots of Health Economics: Gustav Schmoller and Adolph Wagner.- Chapter 4: Menger contra Schmoller: Methodological Issues and Beyond.- Chapter 5: Gustav Schmoller and Karl Popper - Reginald Hansen's Efforts to Reconcile Two Alternative Approaches to the Social Sciences.- Chapter 6: Wagner's Law, Money and the Theory of Financial Crisis - Adolph Wagner's Early Viennese Publications.- Chapter 7: Similarities and Differences in Central Concepts of Social Economy - Adolph Wagner's Concept of State Socialism and Heinrich Pesch's Concept of Solidarism.- Chapter 8: Adolph Wagner Revisited: Is Environmental Quality a Collective Need?.-  Chapter 9: Wagner's Law and the Public Expenditure Growth in Italy From 1861-2016.- Chapter 10: Empirical Evidence on "Wagner's Law of Increasing Government Activity" for the Austrian Monarchy.- Chapter 11: Meincke's Sonderweg.- Chapter 12: Report: Schmoller Research in China and its Potential.- Chapter 13: The Partial Demise of Wagner's Public Finance Structure after 9/11.