History of Economics and History of Science : A Comparative Look at Recent Work in Both Fields

One way to evaluate whether the history of economics has moved toward the history of science is to compare recent work in both fields. In order to narrow the comparison in two rapidly expanding publication areas, I decided to examine two corresponding sets of literature in each field: the articles and books to which the History of Economics Society and the History of Science Society awarded their best article and best book prizes. The winners of the awards from both societies over the period from 2004 to 2008 form the basis for my comparison. What do the new studies in the history of science and economics look like? Do they look increasingly alike as they depart from the quest to judge the growth of scientific and economic knowledge by some set of external standards? Are these fields becoming unified, as some wish?