演化经济学研究竞争中变化发展的市场过程，对应于静态均衡的新古典经济学。它以历史的不可逆视角观察经济现象。它研究开放的系统，关注变革、学习、创造。竞争过程是非均衡的，具有路径的依赖性的，被视为一种甄别的机制。就像主流经济学一样，这个学派主张硏究经济体内各个个体的相互依存、竞争、成长、结构转变及资源限制等现象是相当重要的。

演化经济学利用进化理论硏究各个个体如公司、组织、行为或其他经济活动间的交互如何影响一个地方的经济。

Evolutionary economics is part of mainstream economics as well as a heterodox school of economic thought that is inspired by evolutionary biology. Much like mainstream economics, it stresses complex interdependencies, competition, growth, structural change, and resource constraints but differs in the approaches which are used to analyze these phenomena.