Summary: When people refer to the 'Austrian School,' they are usually referring to the ideas of two prominent economists: Friedrich Hayek and Ludwig von Mises. Dr. Nigel Ashford highlights the similarities and differences of these two influential thinkers. On the one hand, Hayek tends to recognize the limits of human knowledge and reason. He argues that much of the order in society - language, for example - comes from human action. These orders weren't centrally planned or designed. For this reason, Hayek concludes the government lacks the knowledge or ability to centrally plan effectively. Mises arrives at the same conclusions as Hayek, but comes about it differently. Mises believes we can identify certain truths through experience and reasoning. Using a priori deductive reasoning, he too concludes that government has limited knowledge.
