Economic Theory, The 1960s

Abstract For many economists, Paul Samuelson’s activities as an economic adviser and as a newspaper columnist, not to mention his teaching at MIT, would have been sufficient, but during the 1960s he continued to do research and publish on economic theory. A section on consumer theory and international trade illustrates the way his network of associates developed, and one on optimal growth describes a field that effectively developed on the basis of a theory he had developed in the book with Robert Dorfman and Robert Solow. After a section on his writings on welfare economics, the chapter turns to his theory of efficient financial markets, explaining how it was connected to his activities as an investor.