Schumpeter vs. Keynes Redux: 'Still Not Dead'

Abstract

Diamond (2009) compares the citation time series for Schumpeter and Keynes from 1956 to 2006. Citations to Schumpeter steadily increase throughout the period, whereas citations to Keynes begin to level off and then trend slightly downward beginning in the 1990s. As a result, citations to Schumpeter begin to outstrip those to Keynes. This paper replicates Diamond (2009) and extends the analysis to 2017, which incorporates citations since the onset of the Great Recession. The replication confirms the results in Diamond (2009). The analysis beyond 2006 shows citations to Schumpeter remain larger than to Keynes, but citations to Keynes undergo a resurgence. The paper argues the Great Recession helped renew interest in Keynes. Google Trends data for Schumpeter and Keynes are compared and provide evidence showing the heightened interest in Keynes during the Great Recession. For example, in the United States, the peak of Keynes's search interest occurs in February 2009, five months after Lehman Brothers declared bankruptcy.