Tool-box or toy-box? Hard obscurantism in economic modeling

Abstract

“Hard obscurantism” is a species of the genus scholarly obscurantism. A rough intensional definition of hard obscurantism is that models and procedures becomeends in themselves,dissociated from their explanatory functions. Inthe present article, I exemplify and criticize hard obscurantism by examining the writings of emi- nent economists and political scientists.