Science AI Journal
Economics, Econometrics and Finance · Research topic

Open research questions in Economic Theory and Policy

244 unresolved questions extracted from the limitations and future-work sections of 2,468 Economic Theory and Policy papers in our library. Each links back to the study that raised it.

What the literature leaves open

  • The paper identifies a gap in the understanding of the real economy and its relationship with financial markets. It highlights the need to consider the historical accumulation of stocks of wealth and its impact on investment and economic growth. The author notes that the conventional account of the real economy is incomplete and requires a more nuanced understanding of the flow of capital and its impact on investment and economic growth.

    In Search of the Real Economy · 2026 · DOI

  • The paper identifies a gap in the understanding of the effects of monetary and fiscal policies on macrodynamic models with Minskyian financial structures. It highlights the need for further research on the stability of dynamic systems under different policy scenarios.

    Financial structures and monetary and fiscal policies · 2026 · DOI

  • The existing literature on macroeconomic uncertainty does not provide a unified framework to assess and monitor macroeconomic risk. The paper identifies a gap in the literature, where the existing approaches impose restrictions on the shape and nature of the forecast distribution.

    Mixing It Up: Inflation at Risk · 2026 · DOI

  • The paper identifies a gap in the understanding of the intellectual exchange between Péguy and Walras. It highlights the need to explore the tension between republican mysticism and mathematical gradualism in economic theory.

    Un economista socialista. Léon Walras · 2026 · DOI

  • Future research could apply the mesoeconomic approach to other fields. The approach could be used to analyze the contribution of other economic sectors to socio-ecological transitions. Further research is needed to fully understand the potential of the SSE to contribute to socio-ecological transitions.

    Rethinking the Social and Solidarity Economy and Its Potential for Socio-Ecological Transitions: A Mesoeconomic Approach · 2026 · DOI

  • The SSE is a diverse and complex field that requires a comprehensive analytical framework. Prior work has focused on fragmented perspectives, but a more comprehensive framework is needed. The paper aims to fill this gap by proposing a mesoeconomic approach.

    Rethinking the Social and Solidarity Economy and Its Potential for Socio-Ecological Transitions: A Mesoeconomic Approach · 2026 · DOI

  • The lack of clarity in the treatment of sectoral investment shocks. The need for a scenario-based approach to analyse investment effects in a conceptually consistent manner.

    Sectoral Investment in Input-Output Frameworks: A Note on Stamegna et al. (2024) · 2026 · DOI

  • The paper acknowledges the lack of microfoundations and optimization in the Lorenz system. The study notes the difficulty in measuring the parameters of the Lorenz system in the context of economic variables. The paper recognizes the limitations of the mechanical model in capturing the role of institutions, expectations, and information asymmetry in economic dynamics.

    Aplicação das Equações de Lorenz na Macroeconomia: Caos, Atratores e Dinâmica Econômica · 2026 · DOI

  • The paper suggests that future research should focus on developing new macroeconomic models that can capture the complexity of economic systems. The study implies that researchers should explore the application of chaos theory to other areas of economics, such as microeconomics and finance. The paper provides a framework for future research on the application of Lorenz equations to macroeconomic analysis.

    Aplicação das Equações de Lorenz na Macroeconomia: Caos, Atratores e Dinâmica Econômica · 2026 · DOI

  • The significant gap between the Moroccan and Spanish economies - The need for Morocco to invest in human capital, innovation, and industrialization - The challenge of developing a strategy for Morocco to become a platform economy linking Europe and Africa

    LES RÈGLES D’OR POUR QUE L’ÉCONOMIE MAROCAINE DÉPASSE UN JOUR L’ÉCONOMIE ESPAGNOLE: UNE ANALYSE COMPARATIVE DES TRAJECTOIRES ÉCONOMIQUES,DES AVANTAGES STRUCTURELS ET DES STRATÉGIES DE CONVERGENCE DU MAROC ET DE L’ESPAGNE · 2026 · DOI

  • The gap between the Moroccan and Spanish economies is significant - There is a need for strategies to promote Morocco's economic convergence with Spain

    LES RÈGLES D’OR POUR QUE L’ÉCONOMIE MAROCAINE DÉPASSE UN JOUR L’ÉCONOMIE ESPAGNOLE: UNE ANALYSE COMPARATIVE DES TRAJECTOIRES ÉCONOMIQUES,DES AVANTAGES STRUCTURELS ET DES STRATÉGIES DE CONVERGENCE DU MAROC ET DE L’ESPAGNE · 2026 · DOI

  • The existing empirical literature primarily focuses on the effects of inflation targeting on inflation and inflation expectations, with limited evidence on its impact on employment or income distribution. There is a lack of understanding of the mechanisms through which inflation targeting affects income inequality.

    Inflation targeting, Monetary policy, and Inequality · 2026 · DOI

  • The sequencing of reforms is a challenge. The lack of institutions that ensure legal behavior, contract enforcement, and effective prudential regulation is a challenge. The risk of financial instability is a challenge.

    Structural Reforms and Economic Performance: The Experience of Advanced Economies · 2025 · DOI

  • The paper identifies the challenge of attracting industries to the state of Bahia. The study highlights the need for effective tax incentives to promote economic development. The paper notes the challenge of balancing tax incentives with revenue loss.

    ANÁLISE DO IMPACTO DOS PROGRAMAS DE INCENTIVOS FISCAIS NA GERAÇÃO DE EMPREGOS NA INDÚSTRIA E NA RENÚNCIA DE RECEITA DO ESTADO DA BAHIA NO PERÍODO DE 1999 A 2021 · 2024 · DOI

  • The paper identifies a gap in the literature on the impact of tax incentives on job creation in the state of Bahia. The study highlights the need for further research on the effectiveness of tax incentives in promoting economic development.

    ANÁLISE DO IMPACTO DOS PROGRAMAS DE INCENTIVOS FISCAIS NA GERAÇÃO DE EMPREGOS NA INDÚSTRIA E NA RENÚNCIA DE RECEITA DO ESTADO DA BAHIA NO PERÍODO DE 1999 A 2021 · 2024 · DOI

  • Future research could further explore the commercialization of intimacy in the context of tourism. It could examine the implications of the paper's findings for the tourism industry and for policies aimed at promoting more equitable and sustainable tourism development.

    Encontros íntimos: economias afetivas em Cuba e na República Dominicana · 2024 · DOI

  • The paper identifies a gap in understanding the commercialization of intimacy in the context of tourism. It highlights the need to explore the use of intimacy in corporate and romantic relationships in the context of transnational tourism.

    Encontros íntimos: economias afetivas em Cuba e na República Dominicana · 2024 · DOI

  • The need for sustainable development and climate change mitigation in the Asia-Pacific region. The importance of economic cooperation and integration in the region.

    El rol de APEC en la reconfiguración económica: Desafíos y oportunidades en el siglo XXI para economías emergentes · 2024 · DOI

  • These include the ways market power is defined and measured; the use of accounting data to estimate markups; the quantitative implications of theoretical connections among markups, prices, costs, scale elasticities, and profits; and conflicting evidence on whether greater market power has led to lower investment rates and a lower labor share of income.

    Macroeconomics and Market Power: Context, Implications, and Open Questions · 2019 · DOI

  • The paper suggests that by 1990, it will be possible to tell for certain whether there is any credence in the economist's conclusions. By 2000, it will be possible to know whether the intervening years have been as bad as predicted.

    Stabilizing an Unstable Economy · 1987 · DOI

  • The state's role in the U.S. economy during the 1920s is a topic of debate among scholars. There is not a simple answer to the question of whether the state became larger and more interventionist or not.

    The Role of the State in the U.S. Economy during the 1920s · 1987 · DOI

  • Future research could explore the application of the mixed economy framework in different contexts and economies. Further study could be done on the role of social values and community power in economic decision-making. The paper suggests that a more nuanced understanding of the mixed economy and its implications is needed.

    The Nature and Necessity of the Mixed Economy · 1987 · DOI

  • The paper identifies a gap in the dominant ideologies and their failure to provide adequate solutions for economic policy formation. The mixed economy is proposed as a way to fill this gap and provide a more effective and sustainable approach to economic policy.

    The Nature and Necessity of the Mixed Economy · 1987 · DOI

  • The paper suggests applying the basic hypothesis to developing nations, socialist countries, and historical analysis. It implies that further study of the interrelationships of the four major divisions of activity is necessary.

    THE PRIMARY, SECONDARY, TERTIARY AND QUATERNARY SECTORS OF THE ECONOMY · 1987 · DOI

  • The paper identifies a gap in the study of sectoral-structural developments. It notes that economists in developed countries are often disinclined to study the shifts among the megasectors.

    THE PRIMARY, SECONDARY, TERTIARY AND QUATERNARY SECTORS OF THE ECONOMY · 1987 · DOI

Most-cited papers in Economic Theory and Policy

Most recent work

Find a gap in your own Economic Theory and Policy sub-topic

This page shows what the Economic Theory and Policy literature already flags as unresolved. To narrow it to your specific question, run the guided finder — it searches the gap library on demand and checks candidates against 250M+ OpenAlex works.

Open the Research Gap Finder →

Related topics in Economics, Econometrics and Finance

Labor market dynamics and wage inequality
862 open questions
Global trade and economics
603 open questions
Housing, Finance, and Neoliberalism
568 open questions
Economic Theory and Institutions
528 open questions
Regional Economics and Spatial Analysis
507 open questions
Monetary Policy and Economic Impact
490 open questions
Historical Economic and Social Studies
476 open questions
Economic Growth and Productivity
474 open questions
244 open questions have been extracted from the limitations and future-work passages of 2,468 Economic Theory and Policy papers in our library. Each one below links back to the study that raised it, so you can read the original claim in context.

Tools for your next paper

Gaps & Literature SearchFind open questions in any field — 120,000+ open gaps mined from our own library.Pre-CheckIs your paper ready? A Tier 1–5 acceptance probability in seconds.Journal FinderA ranked shortlist of target journals from a 17,500-venue index.Duplicate Publication CheckerCheck prior-publication & salami-slicing risk across 8 sources.Citation GeneratorFreeA DOI or title → APA, MLA, Vancouver, Chicago, BibTeX, RIS. No signup.Graphical Abstract MakerFreeTurn your findings into a colorblind-safe graphical abstract.

Compare the category — Honest roundups of the AI research tools, ours listed alongside the alternatives.

Command palette

Jump anywhere, run any action.