The Cambridge School of Keynesian Economics

Between the Cambridge Journal of Economics (CJE) and the Cambridge School of Keynesian Economics there have been strong ties, from the very beginning. In this article the author investigates the environment that at Cambridge (UK) saw the birth of the CJE, in 1977, and the relationship that linked it to the direct pupils of Keynes. A critical question is explicitly examined: why didn’t the “Keynesian revolution” succeed in becoming a permanent winning paradigm? The article lists eight unique analytical building blocks that makes this School of economics a viable (and in some directions definitely superior) alternative to mainstream economics. The article highlights the need for a two-stage approach, concerning pure theory and extensive institutional analysis. It is argued that a combination of the two would strengthen the coherence of the theoretical foundations, and at the same time would provide a fruitful extension of economic analysis for empirical, institutional and economic dynamics investigations.