Editing Operationalization (section)

===Economics objections===
One of the main critics of operationalism in social science argues that "the original goal was to eliminate the subjective [[Mentalism (psychology)|mentalistic]] concepts that had dominated earlier psychological theory and to replace them with a more operationally meaningful account of human behavior. But, as in economics, the supporters ultimately ended up "turning operationalism inside out".<ref>Green 2001 ''Operationism Again: What Did Bridgman Say? What Did Bridgman Need?'' in Theory and Psychology 11 (2001) p.49</ref> "Instead of replacing 'metaphysical' terms such as 'desire' and 'purpose'" they "used it to legitimize them by giving them operational definitions." Thus in psychology, as in economics, the initial, quite radical operationalist ideas eventually came to serve as little more than a "reassurance fetish"<ref name="Koch1992p275">Koch, Sigmund (1992) ''Psychology’s Bridgman vs. Bridgman’s Bridgman: An Essay in Reconstruction.'', in ''Theory and Psychology'' vol. 2 no. 3  (1992) p.275</ref> for mainstream methodological practice."<ref>Wade Hands (2004) [http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/112364/on_operationalisms_and_economics/ "On operationalisms and economics" (December 2004)]</ref>