Agent-based modeling and economic theory: where do we stand?: Introduction to the special issue of the 17th WEHIA conference

This paper provides a survey of the development and contributions of agent-based modeling to economic analysis, without any claim to be exhaustive. Our perspective is particularly shaped by the papers presented at the 17th Wehia conference, a selection of which are published in this special issue. The paper shows how agent-based models have developed, and how they have improved our understanding not only of macroeconomic disequilibria but also of the possibilities of the emergence of equilibrium in such realistic systems. It also reviews the progress made in our understanding of real markets, and lists some of the improvements needed to establish these models as alternative tools to the present orthodox models. © 2014, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.