經濟學曾經以其理論模型化的優勢，向社會科學的其他領域擴展其學術的影響力，這股力量彷彿模型作為行為假設的基礎，以及採取理性模型作為行為假設的基礎，以及採用計量實證作為檢證理論的標準。不過，畢竟因為主題的差異，學術上的經濟學帝國主義未竟其功。近來，隨著新制度主義在經濟學界興起，社會科學的其他領域也對新制度主義的理論方法產生很大興趣，社會科學的其他領域也對新制度主義的理論方法產生很大興趣，逐漸成成一次新的學術運動。究竟新制度主義是讓社會科學反回學科間可以互相溝通的大理論，還是另一場經濟學帝國主義的侵略？節案在於各個學科研究者的作法。如果新制度主義在各個社會科學領域的建構過程中，能夠維持其學科中制度議題的主體性，而具能夠從學科議題的應用中產生新的制度理論，則新制度主義將不會是經濟學帝國主義的再現。從新制度主義的理論發展來看，社會科學有相當大的機會能夠返回大理論。

　　　　　Economics, with the advantage of its model-building approach, has extended its influence into other fields of the social sciences and built up an academic imperialism that forced political science and sociology to adopt a retinal behavior assumption in their theories and econometric methods in the empirical works. However, because of the differences in the subject matters, the economics imperialism has not yet succeeded. In recent years, as the new institutionalism prospered in the field of economics, there has been a new movement toward integrating the social sciences, based on the wide adoption of institutional analysis in all fields of social sciences. Will the new institutionalism bring the social sciences back to a grand theory with communicable fields, or the another invasion of the economics imperialism? The answer depends on what the social scientists will do if each field of the social sciences can maintain the uniqueness of its institutional subject and develop new theories through applicators, as the new institutionalism becomes a common practice in each field, then the new institutionalism shall not be a reincarnation of economics imperialism. Therefore, there is a pretty good chance for a return of grand theory, based on the new institutionalism, in the social sciences.