Profile Major Works Resources

Irving Fisher, 1867-1947.

Portrait of I.Fisher

American Neoclassical economist, and long-time professor of economics at Yale University.

Irving Fisher was one of the earliest American Neoclassicals of unusual mathematical sophistication.  He made numerous important contributions to the Neoclassical Marginalist Revolution, of which the following are but a sample:

(1) his contributions to the Walrasian theory of equilibrium price (he also invented the indifference curve device) in 1892;
(2) his volumes on the theory of capital and investment (1896, 1898, 1906, 1907, 1930) which brought the Austrian intertemporal theories into the English-speaking world, wherein he introduced the famous distinction between "stocks" and flows", the Fisher Separation Theorem and the loanable funds theory of interest rates.
(3) his famous resurrection of the Quantity Theory of Money (1911, 1932, 1935);
(4) the theory of index numbers (1922);
(5) the Phillips Curve (1926)
(6) his debt-deflation theory (1933) which is echoed in Post Keynesian economics.

Irving Fisher was born in Saugerties, in the Hudson valley of New York.  He studied at Yale University, obtaining his B.A. in 1888 and his Ph.D. in 1891.  For his dissertation, published in 1892,  Fisher constructed a remarkable machine equipped with pumps, wheels, levers and pipes in order to illustrate his price theory [see pictures of his draft and his first and second prototypes].   From 1890, Fisher was a mathematics tutor at Yale.  After Sumner's abrupt leave in 1891, Fisher was slated to teach a course on the "Mathematical Theory of Price".  In 1893, Fisher was appointed assistant professor of mathematics.  But he subsequently sojourned abroad, and spent 1893 and 1894 studying in Paris and Berlin.  Shortly after his return, Irving Fisher was appointed assistant professor of economics at Yale in 1895, and raised to full professor in 1898.  He retained his position at Yale until his retirement.

Fisher was a colorful and eccentric figure. He was involved in various social fads, notably Fisher was an avid advocate of eugenics and health food diets.   He  made a fortune with his visible index card system - ancestral to the rolodex.  Fisher famously advocated the establishment of an 100% reserve requirement in the banking system   Irving Fisher's personal fortune was lost and his reputation was severely marred by the 1929 Wall Street Crash, when just days before the crash, he was reassuring investors that stock prices were not overinflated but, rather, had achieved a new, permanent plateau.

 

  


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Major works of Irving Fisher

  • (Trans.) "The Geometrical Theory of the Determination of Prices by Prof. Leon Walras", 1892, AAPSS, v.3, p.45-64 [js]
  • "The Mathematical Investigations in the Theory of Value and Prices", 1892, Transactions of the Connecticut Academy of Arts and Sciences, v.9, p.1-124
  • The Mathematical Investigations in the Theory of Value and Prices, 1892 [offprint]
  • (Editor) Bibliographies of the Present Officers of Yale University, 1893 [bk]
  • "The Mechanics of Bimetallism", 1894, EJ, p.527
  • Appreciation and Interest: a study of the influence of monetary appreciation or depreciation on the rate of interest, with applications to the bimetallic controversy, and the theory of interest, 1896 [Pub of AEA, v.9 (Aug)  p.331], [offprint, offprint, av], [js]
  • "Appreciation and Interest: A study of the influence of monetary appreciation and depreciation on the rate of interest, with applications to the bimetallic controversy and the theory of interest", p.331 [js] [
  • Elements of Geometry, with Andrew W. Phillips,1896 [bk], [1897 abridged ed]
  • "What is Capital?", 1896, EJ, p.509
  • "Senses of 'Capital'", 1897, EJ, p.199
  • "The Role of Capital in Economic Theory", 1897, EJ. p.511
  • "Bibliography of Mathematical Economics", 1897, in A. Cournot, Researches into the Mathematical Principles of the Theory of Wealth, p.173-209 [av]
  • A Brief Introduction to the Infinitesimal Calculus: Designed especially to aid in reading mathematical economics and statistics, 1897 [bk, av] [1906 2nd ed, 1916 repr, 1918 av, 1921 repr, av]
  • "Cournot and Mathematical Economics", 1898, QJE (Jan), p.119 [js]
  • "Notes on Cournot's Mathematics", 1898, QJE (Jan),   p.238 [js]
  • "Mortality Statistics of the United States Census", 1899, Pub AEA (ns 2, Mar), p.121 [js]
  • "Precedents for Defining Capital" , 1904, QJE (May)  [McM] [av]
  • The Nature of Capital and Income, 1906. [bk. av], [av, 1912 repr, av], [1911 French trans av]
  • "Why Has the Doctrine of Laissez Faire Been Abandoned?", 1907, Science, p.18 [js]
  • "The Influence of Flesh-Eating on Endurance", 1907, Yale Medical Journal p.1
  • "The Effect of Diet on Endurance", 1907, Transactions Conn. Acad v.13, p.1 [offp] [av]
  • "A Graphic Method in Practical Dietetics", 1907, J of AMA, p.1316 [offp]
  • The Rate of Interest:  its nature, determination, and relation to economic phenomena, 1907. [bk] [av]
  • The Modern Crusade against Consumption", 1908, Pub of Committee of One Hundred, (Sep) [av]
  • "Insurance Companies and the Public Health", 1910 [offp]
  • "The Life Extension Institute", 1910 [bk]
  • National Vitality, its wastes and conservation, 1910. [bk]. [av]
  • Introduction to Economic Science, 1910 [bk], [av]
  • "Recent Changes in Price Levels and Their Causes", 1911, AER, Supp: p.37 [js] and "Discussion"  (Kemmerer, Carver, Taussing, Laughlin, Fisher), p.46 [js]
  • "The Equation of Exchange, 1896-1910", 1911, AER, p.296 [js]
  • "The 'impatience theory' of interest: a study of the causes determining the rate of interest", 1911, Scientia, p.380 [offp av]
  • The Purchasing Power of Money: Its determination and relation to credit, interest and crises, 1911. [1912 repr, 1913 2nd ed,  1918 repr, 1920 repr,1922 repr, 1926 repr] [Lib]
  • Elementary Principles of Economics, 1911 [av] [1912 av][1916 repr]
  • "An International Commission on the Cost of Living", 1912, AER, Supp: p.92 [js]
  • ""The Equation of Exchange" for 1911, and Forecast", 1912, AER, p.302 [js]
  • "An International Commission on Cost of Living", 1912, AER
  • "Will the Present Upward Trend of World Prices Continue?", 1912, AER, p.531 [js] [av]
  • Suggested Problems for Teachers, for use with Elementary Principles of Economics 1912 [bk, av]
  • Instability of Gold, 1912 [bk]
  • "Sale of Intoxicating Liquors: Statement", 1912 [offpr]
  • Memorial Relating to the Conservation of Human Life, as contemplated by bill (S. 1) providing for a United States Public Health Service, with E.F. Robbins, 1912 [bk]
  • "The Public Health Movement", 1912 [art]
  • "Eugenics", 1913, Good Health Magazine, p.561 [av]
  • "A Remedy for the Rising Cost of Living: Standardizing the Dollar", 1913, AER, p.20 [js] and "Discussion", p.29 [js] (Sprague, B.M. Anderson, Kemmerer, I Fisher)
  • "The Equation of Exchange for 1912, and Forecast", 1913, AER, p.341 [js]
  • "The Impatience Theory of Interest", 1913, AER, p.610 [js]  (reply to Seager)
  • "Objections to a Compensated Dollar Answered", 1914, AER, p.818 [js]
  • Why is the Dollar Shrinking? A study in the high cost of living, 1914. [bk, av]
  • The Standardization of the Dollar: A study in the high cost of living, 1914 [av]
  • After the war, what?  A plea for a league of peace, 1914. [av]
  • "Introduction", 1915, in P. Mackaye, A Substitute for War, p.5 [av]
  • "Review of Auspitz and Lieben's Researches into the Theory of Price", 1915, AER, p.106 [js]
  • How to Live: Rules for healthful living, based on modern science. with E.L. Fisk, 1915 [1917 ed]
  • "The Mortality of Our Public Men, being a study of the mortality of the presidents, vice presidents, senators and representatives, of the United States compared, with insured lives, and others", 1916, AEA Quarterly (Mar) [av]
  • "The Need for Health Insurance", 1917 [offp]
  • "The 'Ratio' Chart for Plotting Statistics, 1917, Pub ASA, p.577 [offpr]
  • Miscellaneous Writings, 1907-1917. [bk]
  • Health for the Soldier and Sailor, 1918, with E.L. Fisk [bk]
  • The Effect of Diet on Endurance, 1918 [bk]
  • "Some Contributions of the War to Our Knowledge of Money and Prices (Abstract)", 1918, AER
  • "Is "Utility" the Most Suitable Term for the Concept It is Used to Denote?", 1918, AER. [McM]
  • "Economists in Public Service", 1919, AER. [pdf]
  • "Stabilizing the Dollar", 1919, AER
  • "Stabilizing the Dollar in Purchasing Power", 1919, American Problems of Reconstruction [av]
  • "Consideration of the Proposal to Stabilize the Unit of Money: Rejoinder", 1919, AER
  • "The New Price Revolution", 1919 [av]
  • Stabilizing the Dollar: A plan to stabilize the general price level without fixing individual prices, 1920 [bk] [av]
  • "Dollar Stabilization", 1921, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Supplement [lib]
  • The Making of Index Numbers: A study of their varieties, tests and reliability, 1922. [bk], [av]
  • Money and Credit, 1922 [bk]
  • League or War?, 1923 [av]
  • "The Statistical Relation Between Unemployment and Price Changes", 1926, International Labor Review  (repr. as "I Discovered the Phillips Curve", 1973, JPE)
  • Prohibition at its Worst, 1926 [1927 ed]
  • The Money Illusion, 1928.
  • The Theory of Interest: As determined by the impatience to spend income and opportunity to invest it. , 1930.[Lib]
  • Booms and Depressions, 1932. [pdf]
  • "The Debt-Deflation Theory of Great Depressions", 1933, Econometrica. [pdf]
  • Inflation, 1933.
  • Stamp Scrip, 1933.
  • 100% Money, 1935.

HET

 

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Resources on Irving Fisher

Contemporary

  • "Review of Fisher's Mathematical Investigations", by F.Y. Edgeworth, 1893, EJ
  • "Review of Fisher's Mathematical Investigations", by David Kinley, 1893, AAPSS, p.172 [js]
  •  "Fisher's Capital and Income" , by Thorstein Veblen, 1908, Political Science Quarterly. [McM]
  •  "Fisher's Rate of Interest" , by Thorstein Veblen 1909, Political Science Quarterly. [McM]
  • "Fisher's Purchasing Power of Money", by OMW Sprague, 1911, QJE (Nov), p.140 [js]
  • "The Impatience Theory of Interest", by Henry R. Seager,  1912, AER, p.834 [js] (on Fisher) and "Comment on Fisher", 1913, AER p.618 [js]
  • "Review of Fisher's Elementary Principles of Economics", by T.N. Carver, 1913, AER, p.620 [js]
  • "Review of Fisher's Why is the Dollar Shrinking?" by Everett W. Goodhue, 1914, AER, p.100 [js]
  • "Consideration of the Proposal to Stabilize the Unit of Money" by G. H. Knibbs, 1919, AER

Modern

  • "How to Compute Equilibrium Prices in 1891"  by W.C. Brainard and H.E. Scarf, 2000 [cwls] - great explanation of Fisher's 1892 hydraulic machine.
  • "Irving Fisher and his Compensated Dollar Plan", by Don Patinkin, 1993, FRB Richmond [pdf]
  • "Fisher and Wicksell on the quantity theory" by Thomas M. Humphrey, 1997, Quarterly Review of FRB Richmond [pdf]
  • "Neoclassical Theory in America: J. B. Clark and Fisher", by James Tobin, 1985, AER [wp cwls]
  • "Commentary of Irving Fisher's Nature of Capital and Income, 1906", 1991 [wp cwls]
  • "Irving Fisher (1867–1947) in Retrospect", six essays by James Tobin, Robert M. Solow,  R.E. Hall, R. Thaler, R.W. Dimand, W.J. Barber 1997, AER [cwls]
  • "Irving Fisher: modern behavioral economist" by Richard D. Thaler, 1997, AER [pdf]
  • "Irving Fisher and the contribution of improved longevity to living standards" by William D. Nordhaus, 2005, AJES [cwls]
  • "Irving Fisher and the Cowles Commission" at Cowles [cowles]
  • "Irving Fisher: the origins of central bank policy" by Robert Formiani, Economic Insights, FRB Dallas [pdf]
  • "The 1929 Stock Market: Irving Fisher was Right", by Ellen McGrattan and  Edward C. Prescott, 2003, FRB Minneapolis [pdf]
  • Mark Underwood's Page on Black Thursday - New York Times Headlines, including statements by Irving Fisher
  • Portrait of Irving Fisher with a Beard
  • Irving Fisher Papers at Yale
  • Fisher Page at McMaster
  • Irving Fisher Conference at the Cowles Foundation
  • "Alcohol Prohibition was a Failure" by Mark Thornton, at Policy Analysis, relating Irving Fisher's 1927 findings
  • Yale University - economics home page.
  • Irving Fisher Page in Spanish
  • "Irving Fisher out of Keynes's shadow", The Economist, 2009 [online]
  • Irving Fisher page at LibertyFund
  • Fisher entry at Concise Encycl of Economics, LibertyFund
  • Fisher entry in Britannica
  • Wikipedia

 

 
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