The Received View Attributes a Form of Synthetic Apriorism to Ludwig von Mises, but We Contend His Epistemological Position Is a Form of Conventionalism

Whereas the predominating received view promoted by many Neo-Austrian economists attributes a form of synthetic apriorism to Mises, we contend that his epistemological position is ideally classified as a form of conventionalism. Reinterpreting praxeology as a conventionalist research program yields several beneficial upshots: It allows to resolve some open interpretational problems in Mises’ writings; objections to applying formal methods to problems in Austrian economics are alleviated; and above all, a conventionalist reading likely increases fruitful interaction between the Austrian School and mainstream philosophers of science, social scientists, and economists.

--Alexander Linsbichler, introduction to Was Ludwig von Mises a Conventionalist? A New Analysis of the Epistemology of the Austrian School of Economics (Cham, CH: Palgrave Macmillan, 2017), 3-4.