Is it necessary to ask permission before including someone in the acknowledgements of a economic research paper? Do I need permission to thank someone, even if I said “all mistakes are our own”?
Do I have to make sure that the person being thanked must read the paper, or, it is fine if he just discussed about the general ideas and the administration stuffs of the target journal?
As a student I don't know how does a specific journal work so I asked a lot of questions. I think I need to ask for the permission before acknowledging, but, if it is unnecessary, then I will be just wasting the time of a super busy professor.
I know that in Math people almost never ask for permissions but in life science people need permissions. I think theoretical economics follows the culture in mathematics?
In short, no it is not necessary. I have never asked anyone for permission and I have never been asked. The people I thank usually have not read my paper (rarely anyone does, to be honest), but we have had chats on visits or after seminars or conferences. If you thank someone make sure they are familiar with the paper. Certainly include someone who presented a formal discussion at a conference.
By all means, never include someone in your thank-you note who you have not talked to. People will see this as a strategic way to influence referee selection. However, if someone made great comments that greatly influenced the direction of the paper, name them. It's free and makes people happy.