Skip to main content

The criminal responsibilities of … economists?

Using the events of L'Aquila and the subsequent convictions of Italian seismologists as a starting point, Dr Ioannis Oikonomou goes on to explore the extent to which economists could and should be held accountable for economic and financial turmoils.

In case you have missed it, a few months ago it was widely reported in the media that half a dozen Italian seismologists were convicted for manslaughter after being accused of not being able to predict (and giving false assurances prior to) the earthquake that struck L’Aquila and led to the death of 300 people. Reactions varied greatly: from the Royal Society and US National Academy issuing brief statements and simply condemning the decision of the Italian court, to individuals claiming we are moving back to “the medieval ages” and “the Spanish Inquisition model” to harshly worded articles claiming that scientists need to be held accountable : “those who claim the title “scientist”, be it natural or social, expect to combine the immunity of diplomats and the infallibility of popes.”

By now you are probably wondering what does any of this have to do with a finance-related blog and when will the economists mentioned in the title show up. Besides, unlike seismology or meteorology, finance and economics are hardly the scientific fields that can be connected to catastrophic events that may lead to the loss of human lives.

Or are they?

You can continue reading the article in full on the ICMA Centre's blog.

Published 4 February 2013

You might also like

ICMA Centre executive education contributes to Henley Business School Financial Times Ranking

17 May 2010
Henley Business School's position as a world-ranked provider of executive education has been confirmed by the results of the Financial Times Executive Education Ranking published 10 May 2010. This is the first year that the ICMA Centre has contributed to the Business School's entry.
Rankings news

Congratulations to the winners of the Chancellor’s Award 2013!

7 November 2013
Many congratulations to four of our ICMA Centre undergraduates who will be honoured at this year's annual celebration hosted by the Chancellor, Sir John Madejski and Vice-Chancellor, Sir David Bell.

'Our distrust is very expensive’: How do we restore trust in banks?

4 March 2019
A paper by Dr Linda Arch, Lecturer in Finance at the ICMA Centre has been published by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR). The Spring 2019 issue of the IPPR Progressive Review is based on the theme of democracy, post-Brexit. In the paper titled “'Our distrust is very expensive’: How do we restore trust in banks?”, Linda explores the idea that effective bank regulation depends upon trust, which requires trustworthy banks and regulators.
Research news