The evolution of D. North's views: From Marxism to the new institutional economy

Subject. The article addresses the evolution of D. North’s views, one of the most influential economists of the institutional field. Objectives. The main purpose of the research is to study the evolution of D. North's views that took place in the context of global events and the development of economics. Methods. The study rests on the methods of comparative and content analysis of D. North's works and research on his scientific heritage. Results. The paper presents the main stages of D. North's academic career and intellectual evolution. Based on the study of primary sources, a significant part of which is not published in Russian, it shows how the subject area and methodology of D. North have changed in the process of searching for relevant approaches to explaining the factors of economic growth and economic shifts. It also gives D. North's arguments regarding the cognitive possibilities of Marxism, economic history, neoclassical theory, cliometrics, and new institutional economics. Conclusions. The analysis of the evolution of D. North's views enabled to identify factors determining the development of economics from the 1950s to the early 21st century. He persistently sought to design an effective research program to study the factors of economic growth. He also tried to apply neoclassical tools in the analysis of effectiveness of institutions, integrate neoclassical theory, economic history, and the concept of transaction costs, develop an interdisciplinary approach, combining cognitive science, anthropology, political science, history, and neoclassical theory.