Heterodox economics differs from orthodox or mainstream economics. It draws on a multiplicity of ideas, disciplines, methods and voices to present a more radical alternative to the dominant paradigm of neoclassical economics, which is viewed as overly narrow and blind-sided to how economies actually work.

Andrew Trigg traces the heterodox tradition from its origins in the anti-capitalism ideas of the first half of the nineteeth century, through to Keynes and the present day. He shows the plurality of ideas which inform its history – including social theory, feminism and environmental thought – and the methodological challenge they present to mainstream economics. The book also considers the prospects for heterodox economics and whether it will continue to remain outside the citadel.