George David Norman Worswick (1916–2001), also known as David Worswick, was an Oxford economist specialising in understanding of the UK's economy from a Keynesian perspective.
[McMahon, Kit (2001) Obituary: David Worswick The Independent, Friday, 25 May][Kit Jones (1988) Research 1938-88 Fifty Years of Economic Research: a Brief History of the National Institute of Economic and Social, National Institute Economic Review 1988; 124; 36]
Whilst mathematically well trained, like
Alfred Marshall
Alfred Marshall (26 July 1842 – 13 July 1924) was an English economist, and was one of the most influential economists of his time. His book '' Principles of Economics'' (1890) was the dominant economic textbook in England for many years. I ...
, he became dubious about the use of mathematics in economics arguing against those who tried to avoid the difficult parts of economic problems by resorting to solvable simple equations.
He was also critical of econometricians arguing that: they ''are not, it seems to me, engaged in forging tools to arrange and measure actual facts so much as making a marvellous array of pretend-tools which would perform wonders if ever a set of facts should turn up in the right form. Thus what was said above about the detached mathematical nature of much economic theory also goes for some econometric theory as well.'' But he counterbalances these criticisms by arguing that ''econometrics has been a powerful force in bringing economic theory back into touch with reality''.
Career
* Researcher Oxford University Institute of Statistics 1940-60;
* Fellow and Tutor in Economics,
Magdalen College, Oxford
Magdalen College (, ) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1458 by William of Waynflete. Today, it is the fourth wealthiest college, with a financial endowment of £332.1 million as of 2019 and one of the s ...
1945-65 (Emeritus)
* Visiting Professor Economics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA 1963-64;
* Senior Tutor 1955-57, Vice-President 1963-65;
* Director
National Institute of Economic and Social Research 1965-82
Awards and prestigious academic posts
FBA 1979;
CBE 1981;
President,
Royal Economic Society 1982-84;
Other sources
Obituary - Royal Economic Society Newsletter Issue no. 114 July 2001
Key publications
* (1952)(with
Peter Ady
Peter Honorine Ady (1914, Rangoon – 2004) was an Oxford economist. She was the daughter of Malcom H. Ady and Cecile Estelle Muriel DuBern.
Life
Ady first attended Oxford as an undergraduate at Lady Margaret Hall, later becoming a tutor and the ...
) The British Economy 1945-1950
* (1962)(with
Peter Ady
Peter Honorine Ady (1914, Rangoon – 2004) was an Oxford economist. She was the daughter of Malcom H. Ady and Cecile Estelle Muriel DuBern.
Life
Ady first attended Oxford as an undergraduate at Lady Margaret Hall, later becoming a tutor and the ...
) The British Economy in the Nineteen-Fifties
* (1991) Unemployment: A Problem of Policy. Analysis of British Experience and Prospects. By G. D. N. Worswick. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press/National Institute of Economic and Social Research,
[Knight, K. G., (1994). Review of Unemployment A Problem of Policy: Analysis of British Experience and Prospects. The Economic Journal, 104, 422, 167-168.]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Worswick, G. D. N.
British economists
1916 births
2001 deaths
English economists
Fellows of the British Academy
Commanders of the Order of the British Empire