The Evolution of an Enduring Expertise: Understanding Irish Economists in Irish Public Discourse in the Great Recession

This paper focuses on the institutional and social contexts of Irish economists’ prominence in public discourse in Ireland during the Great Recession. While examining performative aspects of experts’ legitimacy is important, understanding the wider societal context of how particular professional expertise is recognised is also vital. The economics profession generally is characterised by strong hierarchy and dense integration and this paper explores such phenomena in the Irish context.  The Irish context is of interest more generally as a prominent PIIGS country in the Eurozone crisis, as a small peripheral state and as a site of confluence between Anglo-American and European influences. Its close relationships with both the United Kingdom and the United States are particular interesting for an examination of the relationships between national and international influences on economists.