Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Berks · Courses
ECON
102 courses with the subject ECON, each shown exactly as we captured it from the college's catalog, with every element we hold. Where the wording looks broken, that is our reading of the catalog, not the college's text.
ECON 102Introductory Microeconomic Analysis and Policy3
Methods of economic analysis and their use; price determination; theory of the firm and distribution. ECON 102 Introductory Microeconomic Analysis and Policy (3)(GS)(BA) This course meets the Bachelor of Arts degree requirements. Economics is the study of how people satisfy their wants in the face of limited resources. One way to think about economics is that it is a consistent set of methods and tools that is valuable in analyzing certain types of problems related to decision--making, resource allocation, and the production and distribution of goods and services. There are two main branches of economics, microeconomics, and macroeconomics. Macroeconomics is concerned with economy--wide factors such as inflation, unemployment, and overall economic growth. Microeconomics deals with the behavior of individual households and firms and how government influences that behavior; it is the subject of this course. More specifically, ECON 102 is an introduction to microeconomic analysis and policy. The principal objective of the course is to enable students to analyze major microeconomic issues clearly and critically. Students will be introduced to the methods and tools of economic analysis, and these analytical tools will be applied to questions of current policy interest. Learning these methods and tools and applying them to interesting policy questions and issues is sometimes called "thinking like an economist." An important goal of this course is to take each student as far down the road of "thinking like an economist" as possible. A variety of mechanisms are used to assess student performance. These evaluation methods typically include exams, quizzes, homework assignments, and group projects. ECON 102 is an introductory course in economics and as such, serves as a prerequisite for several microeconomics--oriented 300--level courses. It is also a required course for all majors and minors in economics, and meets requirements for a General Education (GS) or Bachelor of Arts social science course. Students who have completed ECON 302 may not enroll in this course.
ECON 102HIntroductory Microeconomic Analysis and Policy (Honors)3
ECON 102H Introductory Microeconomic Analysis and Policy, Honors (3)(GS)(BA) This course meets the Bachelor of Arts degree requirements. Economics is the study of how people satisfy their wants in the face of limited resources. One way to think about economics is that it is a consistent set of methods and tools that is valuable in analyzing certain types of problems related to decision--making, resource allocation, and the production and distribution of goods and services. There are two main branches of economics, microeconomics, and macroeconomics. Macroeconomics is concerned with economy--wide factors such as inflation, unemployment, and overall economic growth. Microeconomics deals with the behavior of individual households and firms and how government influences that behavior; it is the subject of this course. More specifically, ECON 102 is an introduction to microeconomic analysis and policy. The principal objective of the course is to enable students to analyze major microeconomic issues clearly and critically. Students will be introduced to the methods and tools of economic analysis, and these analytical tools will be applied to questions of current policy interest. Learning these methods and tools and applying them to interesting policy questions and issues is sometimes called "thinking like an economist." An important goal of this course is to take each student as far down the road of "thinking like an economist" as possible. A variety of mechanisms are used to assess student performance. These evaluation methods typically include exams, quizzes, and homework assignments. This course serves as a prerequisite for several microeconomics--oriented 300--level courses. This honors version of the course is designed to provide the opportunity to pursue this course at a more in-depth and mathematically rigorous level.
ECON 104Introductory Macroeconomic Analysis and Policy3
This course meets the Bachelor of Arts degree requirements. Economics is the study of how people satisfy their wants in the face of limited resources. One way to think about economics is that it is a consistent set of methods and tools that is valuable in analyzing certain types of problems related to decision-making, resource allocation, and the production and distribution of goods and services. There are two main branches of economics, microeconomics, and macroeconomics. Microeconomics deals with the behavior of individual households and firms and how that behavior is influenced by government. Macroeconomics is concerned with economy-wide factors such as inflation, unemployment, and overall economic growth; it is the subject of this course.More specifically, ECON 104 is an introduction to macroeconomic analysis and policy. The principal objective of the course is to enable students to analyze major macroeconomic issues clearly and critically. Students will be introduced to the methods and tools of economic analysis, and these analytical tools will be applied to questions of current policy interest. Broadly, the course focuses on the determination of national income, on unemployment, inflation, and economic growth in the context of a global economy, and on how monetary and fiscal policy, in particular, influence the economy. Learning the methods and tools of economics and applying them to interesting policy questions and issues is sometimes called "thinking like an economist." An important goal of this course is to take each student as far down the road of "thinking like an economist" as possible. A variety of mechanisms is used to assess student performance. These evaluation methods typically include exams, quizzes, homework assignments, and group projects.ECON 104 is an introductory course in economics, and as such, serves as a prerequisite for 300-level courses in intermediate macroeconomic analysis, international economics, and money and banking. It is also a required course for all majors and minors in economics, and meets requirements for a General Education or Bachelor of Arts Social Science (GS) course. Students who have completed ECON 304 may not enroll in this course.
ECON 104HIntroductory Macroeconomic Analysis and Policy (Honors)3
ECON 104H Introductory Macroeconomic Analysis and Policy (3)(GS)(BA) This course meets the Bachelor of Arts degree requirements. Economics is the study of how people satisfy their wants in the face of limited resources. One way to think about economics is that it is a consistent set of methods and tools that is valuable in analyzing certain types of problems related to decision-making, resource allocation, and the production and distribution of goods and services. There are two main branches of economics, microeconomics, and macroeconomics. Microeconomics deals with the behavior of individual households and firms and how that behavior is influenced by government. Macroeconomics is concerned with economy-wide factors such as inflation, unemployment, and overall economic growth; it is the subject of this course. More specifically, ECON 104H is an introduction to macroeconomic analysis and policy. The principal objective of the course is to enable students to analyze major macroeconomic issues clearly and critically. Students will be introduced to the methods and tools of economic analysis, and these analytical tools will be applied to questions of current policy interest. Broadly, the course focuses on the determination of national income, on unemployment, inflation, and economic growth in the context of a global economy, and on how monetary and fiscal policy, in particular, influence the economy. Learning the methods and tools of economics and applying them to interesting policy questions and issues is sometimes called "thinking like an economist." An important goal of this course is to take each student as far down the road of "thinking like an economist" as possible. A variety of mechanisms is used to assess student performance. These evaluation methods typically include exams, quizzes, and homework assignments. This course serves as a prerequisite for 300-level courses in intermediate macroeconomic analysis, international economics, and money and banking. This honors version of the course is designed to provide the opportunity to pursue this course at a more in-depth and mathematically rigorous level.
ECON 106 is an introductory course in economics/statistics which is designed to prepare students for econometrics (ECON 306). The course emphasizes working with data and statistical ideas. Students will develop a working knowledge of statistics that can be applied not only to econometrics, but also nearly all of the sciences. The first part of the course will cover concepts related to probability and provide many examples of the use of probabilistic reasoning. Next, the course introduces random variables and how they may be represented by probability distributions of either discrete or continuous type. Next, the course covers sampling from a population and the distributions of some sample statistics. This leads to the crucial question of estimation - how to best use empirical data to inform about the value of the unknown parameters of a population. Students then subject empirical data to hypothesis testing - the use of data as evidence in helping confirm or reject hypotheses an economist might have as to how the world works. The last two weeks of the course will synthesize many of the above ideas in introducing the topic of linear regression, which is the main focus of ECON 306, and is the fundamental empirical tool of economics and many other fields. ECON 106 is an introductory course in economics and serves as a prerequisite for ECON306. It is also a required course for all majors in economics, and meets requirements for a General Education (GQ) or Bachelor of Arts social science course. Students who have completed ECON 306 may not enroll in this course.
ECON 302, Intermediate Microeconomics (3 credits) (GS) (BA). This course teaches microeconomic theory at an intermediate undergraduate level, taking a more mathematical approach. Major components of the course are constrained maximization, the theory of the consumer, the theory of the producer, general equilibrium, market structures, and game theory. The goal of this course is to give the student the fundamentals of microeconomics that will be applied widely to upper level courses in economics. The course begins by developing a model of consumer behavior. This model is extended to derive a consumer's demand for a good, and then numerous applications of this model are investigated, including income and substitution effects of a price change, as well as the determination of relative prices in a general equilibrium framework. The supply side of the market is then discussed. The theory of the firm is developed, and students will explore firm behavior and welfare analysis in various market settings including perfectly competitive markets, monopoly, and oligopoly with strategic interaction between firms. Economics is an analytical subject. Students will learn to use inductive reasoning and other scientific methodology necessary to understand this and other (social) sciences. In short, students will learn to think like an economist. The goal of this course is to extend student understanding of the topics introduced in the principles-level class to the way they are applied in the upper level courses in economics.
ECON 302H Intermediate Microeconomic Analysis (Honors) (3) (GS) (BA) This course is the honors version of ECON302 and meets the Bachelor of Arts degree requirements. There are two branches within the discipline of economics: microeconomics, focused on the behavior of individual economic actors (consumers, firms, and government) and macroeconomics, focused on economic aggregates (e.g., inflation, unemployment, aggregate economic growth). There are four core courses in economics that are required of all majors and minors: introductory and intermediate courses in microeconomics and macroeconomics. This course is the upper-level core course in microeconomic analysis. Students will learn, at a deeper level than that covered in the beginning microeconomics course (ECON 102), and with extensive use of calculus, about supply and demand, consumer theory, the theory of the firm, market structure and market power, factor markets, and extensions to consider uncertainty, missing markets, and limited information. Students will develop their skills for analysis of microeconomic issues. The skills learned in this course are necessary for a student to succeed in advanced courses. As such, this course is a prerequisite for a large number of microeconomics-oriented courses at the 400 level. This honors version of intermediate microeconomics is designed to provide the opportunity for students with advanced knowledge to pursue this key course at a more rigorous and in-depth level.
ECON 304 (Intermediate Macroeconomics) (3) (GS) (BA). This course looks at the causes and consequences of business cycles. Students begin by examining key macroeconomic variables, including nominal and real interest rates, nominal and real GDP, unemployment rates, and potential economic growth. A two-period consumption model is also analyzed with the life cycle theory of consumption. Economic models are studied to analyze these topics, and macroeconomic goals for a society are discussed. After acquiring many analysis tools, the course discusses general equilibrium, where formal theories can model a variety of shocks that hit the macroeconomy and the corresponding reactions in a variety of markets. Related topics include the production function, marginal productivity of capital, firm investment, labor demand, labor supply, marginal product of labor, the supply side of the economy, and aggregate demand. After establishing a solid understanding of general equilibrium, students will examine the Federal Reserve, monetary policy, the market for reserves, open market operations, and quantitative easing. The course finishes with lessons comparing and contrasting classical economic theory vs. Keynesian economic theory. The strengths and weaknesses of each theory are considered relative to the business cycle data.
ECON 304H Intermediate Macroeconomic Analysis (Honors) (3) (GS) (BA) This course is the honors version of ECON304 and meets the Bachelor of Arts degree requirements. There are two branches within the discipline of economics: microeconomics, focused on the behavior of individual economic actors (consumers, firms, and government) and macroeconomics, focused on economic aggregates (e.g., inflation, unemployment, aggregate economic growth). There are four core courses in economics that are required of all majors and minors: introductory and intermediate courses in microeconomics and macroeconomics. This course is the upper-level core course in macroeconomic analysis. Students will learn, at a deeper level than that covered in the beginning macroeconomics course (ECON 104), and with extensive use of calculus, about the measurement and structure of the national economy, long-run economic performance and the factors that influence it, business cycles and macroeconomic policy, and the environment and institutions that are pertinent to macroeconomic policy. Students will develop their skills for analysis of macroeconomic issues and policy. The skills learned in this course are necessary for a student to succeed in advanced courses. As such, this course is a prerequisite for a large number of macroeconomics-oriented courses at the 400 level. This honors version of intermediate macroeconomics is designed to provide the opportunity for students with advanced knowledge to pursue this key course at a more rigorous and in-depth level.
The implementation of statistical techniques to analyze data and address economic questions. Econometric results are produced and assessed. ECON 306H Introduction to Econometrics (3) In this course students learn basic quantitative methods used in applied economics, focusing on linear regression models and their applications. The course will cover topics similar to those covered in ECON 306 but with more mathematical rigor (i.e., using calculus). Following an introduction and reviews of probability and statistics, the course will focus on: (1) the statistical properties of commonly-used estimators and test statistics in regression models, (2) how to use them in practice for statistical inference, and (3) the issue of endogeneity and instrumental variables. Students will study both practical and theoretical aspects of econometrics, by which they will be able to implement the basic methods in practice and to understand the limitations of these methods. This course is an honors version of the second quantitative course in economics that is now required of all economics majors. As noted above, students will learn both theoretical and practical aspects of econometrics, so that they will be able to carry out econometric analyses of data. Evaluation of student performance will be based on homework assignments, midterm exams, and a final exam. Typically, the homework assignments would account for 20 percent of the overall course grade, each of two midterm exams would count for 25 percent of the grade, and the final exam would count for the remaining 30 percent of the grade. This course has ECON 106/106H, Statistical Foundations for Econometrics, as a prerequisite, and will use calculus. Further, the course is a prerequisite for advanced course work in econometrics, such as ECON 465W, ECON 466W, and ECON 483W, as well as other 400-level courses requiring econometrics.
Labor Economics, ECON 315 (3 credits) (GS) (BA). This course is designed to develop the concepts and techniques of labor economic theory and its applications. Key questions to consider for the course include: Why do some people earn more than others? When would people choose to work or not? When would someone choose to further his or her education? Do earnings differences necessarily mean discrimination? To answer these questions, students will begin the course by learning the basics of the labor market, including labor demand and labor supply. Employment and earnings are then discussed, including the definition of unemployment, different types of unemployment, and reasons individuals would choose to work or not. Data is used to examine labor market trends and their implications. The course also explores human capital, wage determination, collective bargaining, wage differentials, discrimination, and related government policies. Considerable emphasis will be placed on problem solving and the application of labor economics to selected public policy issues and current economic events. Knowledge and understanding will be assessed through exams, homeworks, and a final project. This course is one of several 300-level electives which can used toward the Economics major and meets requirements for a General Education (GS) or Bachelor of Arts social science course.
ECON 323, Public Finance (3) (GS) (BA). This course examines contemporary fiscal institutions in the United States, public expenditures, public revenues, and the incidence of major taxes such as the personal income tax, the corporate income tax, and consumption taxes. We also discuss intergovernmental fiscal relations in a federal system of government, and public debt (or deficit financing). We explore the economic rationale for, the current data, and status of the political debate on these topics and others as time permits. Some of the key topics discussed in the lectures include externalities and solutions to market failure associated with them, efficient provision of public goods, and cost-benefit analysis as a nonmarket way to allocate scarce resources. We also devote a substantial amount of time to the market for health care and the role of government in the provision of health care in the United States. In addition to government¿s role in health care, we spend a great deal of time on other major federal government spending programs including social security and a number of spending programs targeted at low income citizens. The later includes the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Here, students are expected to critically analyze the major effects of these programs on poverty as well as incentives to work. On the revenue side of public finances, we focus on both the redistributive and efficiency effects of taxation. We discuss the statutory and economic incidence of consumption taxes, the personal income tax, and the corporate income tax. The last part of the course includes two major topics deficit financing and intergovernmental fiscal relations. In the deficit-financing chapter, we focus on the federal government debt. Students learn about the different measures of public debt, which include gross national debt, intergovernmental debt, and debt held by the public. Under intergovernmental fiscal relations, we discuss the delineation of spending responsibilities between the federal and state governments. We also discuss major funding sources for states and local governments in the United States.
ECON 333, International Economics (3 credits) (GS) (BA). This course applies the knowledge from Introductory of Microeconomics (ECON 102) and Introductory of Macroeconomics (ECON 104) into International trade. Students will learn about why nations trade and the effects of trade on both consumer and producer. Some people will gain and some people will lose from trade and students will learn how to measure gain and loss from trade. This class also introduces trade barrier policies imposed by the government such as tariff, quota, subsidy and other commercial policy such as dumping and countervailing duty. The creation of the international organizations, such as the World Trade Organization (WTO) and General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) are discussed. Later in the course, the Macroeconomics side of the international trade is discussed as well as the Balance of Payments, which is a way to summarize and measure a countries trade with the rest of the world. Students will also examine some of the basics of the foreign exchange market and the relationship with the interest rates. Toward the end of the course, the lessons will cover the International monetary systems, which include the gold standard, Bretton Woods system, fixed exchange rates, and flexible exchange rates
Industrial Organization (3 credits) (GS) (BA) Industrial Organization focuses on the study of markets with imperfect competition. After reviewing the Perfect Competition model, the assumptions of that model are systematically relaxed, allowing us to focus on market failures that result, and how they might be remedied. The Structure-Conduct-Performance paradigm is followed. The structure of an industry affects the behavior of firms in that industry, which in turn affects the performance of that industry, evaluated from an efficiency standpoint. Much current material is discussed, especially potential mergers in certain industries and how they might affect market outcomes. Attention is given to oligopolies, using game theory as a tool with which to analyze the performance of these types of markets. Pricing strategies, asymmetric information, advertising, and antitrust law are also covered. The course is designed to provide students with a theoretical background with which to understand current market structures and events. Empirical data is discussed to test the models and theories presented in class.
Money, credit, commercial and central banking, financial intermediaries, treasury operations, monetary policy. Students who have already taken ECON 451 may not schedule this course. ECON 351 Money and Banking (3)(BA) This course meets the Bachelor of Arts degree requirements. In this course, students learn all about the Federal Reserve and the conduct of monetary policy: both conventional and unconventional. Students will examine many different interest rates and learn how they are determined. Students will study the importance of the Federal Reserve's dual mandate and become familiar with business cycles in the US economy since 1970 and the associated Fed policy during these episodes. Term structures of interest rates are analyzed as well as the risk structure of interest rates. The Taylor Rule and various specifications of the Taylor Rule are applied to these topics. Students also study the efficient market theory and the determination of stock and bond prices. The course finishes by engaging students in the topics of futures, options, and futures options and hedging with futures and options.The objective of the course is help students get a better understanding of macroeconomic and monetary topics and policy. Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to contribute to any discussion about the U.S. economy and Federal Reserve policy, analyze real world events as they relate to U.S. monetary policy, and share their newly acquired human capital with others.The prerequisite for this course is ECON104. Students who have taken ECON451 cannot schedule ECON351.
Economic analysis of the employment relationship from the microeconomic perspective, with emphasis on current labor-market problems and public policy issues.
ECON 412Labor Economics and Labor Markets: Theory, Evidence, and Policy3
Advanced topics in labor economics: theory, empirical evidence, and policy. ECON 412 Labor Economics and Labor Markets: Theory, Evidence, and Policy(3)This course is an advanced course in labor economics. Its coverage of topics overlaps somewhat with the topics covered in ECON 315, but typically the treatment of the topics considered will be distinctly more rigorous for this 400-level course. The broad areas that will be focused on in the course include labor supply, investment in human capital, labor demand, wage determination, search and unemployment, and earnings inequality. The objective of this course is to introduce students to topics in labor economics with a rigorous and advanced analytical approach. For each topic, the course will consider the underlying theory, pertinent empirical evidence, and implications for public policy. The instructional and educational objectives are to provide students with a strong background in labor economics. This will allow them to take advanced seminar courses in the labor field. This course is an advanced introduction to labor economics, and as such has a prerequisite of either ECON 302 or ECON 315. In turn, this course will serve as a gateway to advanced seminar courses in labor economics at the 400 level that the Economics Department is in the midst of creating. The course will count toward both the major and the minor in economics.
ECON 413Economic Growth and the Challenges of World Poverty3
This course is for those who are interested in the challenge posed by persistent world poverty. We will address many different poverty related issues and the goal is to examine how economists can contribute to shedding light on the problem of world poverty and providing insights into its alleviation. Among the questions that we will address are: How persistent is the extent of world poverty? Does rapid economic growth help the poor? Why do some countries grow fast and others fall further behind? What is economic life like when living under a dollar a day? How do we deal with the disease burden? Does providing meals in schools help students perform better? Is microfinance overrated? Has globalization hurt or help the poor? Does foreign aid help or hinder the economic prospects of poor countries?
ECON 422Applying Monetary Theory and Monetary History3
This course provides a framework for the analysis of monetary history. The course objectives are to introduce students to the theoretical framework used by economists to study monetary theory, and to apply that framework in order to explain various monetary systems that have existed in the past. We will examine the empirical evidence, and also consider policy issues in this area. There is scope for re-examining existing analyses of many of those historical systems. Topics discussed in the course include the Federal Reserve control of the money stock, the demand for money, money as part of economic activity, economic indicators and monetary policy, the Lucas critique, interest rates and the frequency at which they are changed, the creation and purpose of central banking, and private banking regulations. Historical monetary events to be discussed include monetary policy before and during the Great Depression, monetary policy during the Great Recession of 2007 - 2009, the gold standard monetary system, the Bretton Woods system, and the termination of these standards. Among all topics, both current and historical, we will examine the incentives of individuals, firms, banks, borrowers, and lenders, and governments as responses to monetary policy changes. Finally, advances in monetary theory based on macroeconomic events, both national and global, will be analyzed. The course will count toward both the major and minor in economics.
Environmental pollution, the market economy, and optimal resource allocation; alternative control procedures; levels of environmental protection and public policy.
Analysis of personal and industrial location decisions, regional economic growth, migration patterns, and regional policy; emphasis on tools and techniques.
ECON 434International Finance and Open Economy Macroeconomics3
Trade balance movements, exchange rate determination; monetary and fiscal policies in open economies; international policy coordination; the world monetary system.
An economic analysis of property rights, contractual arrangements, illegal activities, and regulation; competitive problems due to externalities and market failure.
Theoretical and empirical analyses of auctions and procurements; different modeling environments; econometric analysis of auction and procurement data.
It is not uncommon for two separate and distinct corporate entities within an industry to merge and become one firm. This course includes topics that examine the economics of mergers as well as economic policy with regard to mergers. There often are both pro-competitive and anti-competitive effects of mergers. In the U.S. the Federal Trade Commission has primary responsibility for assessing the balance between effects. Along with the FTC, the antitrust division of the department of justice can analyze potential mergers using economic data and forecasts with tools such as the HHI and four-firm concentration ratio. Legality of non-competitive markets and mergers is also analyzed using the Clayton and Sherman antitrust acts. Topics discussed related to pro-merger economic effects include reduction in the duplication of costly capital, economies of scale, reducing costs by cutting management, human resources, payroll, and other jobs not directly related to production of output. Further, some firms may contend that they are non-viable as a small business, but can survive as a larger competitor as the result of a merger. Finally, mergers may have positive implications for shareholders who effectively own the company. Negative effects of mergers topics are discussed, including a reduction in the number of competing firms, increase in market power, higher prices, reduction in consumer choice, and increased lobbying power of larger firms. This course examines unilateral effects and coordinated effects as identified in the horizontal merger guidelines. Vertical mergers are analyzed as well, where multiple parts of the production process of a final good come under the same ownership. Econometric issues associated with the measurement of unilateral and coordinated effects are discussed. The course concludes with ex-post merger reviews. This course is an applied microeconomics seminar in the field of industrial organization and will seek to provide students with the analytical methods of both the theoretical and empirical analysis of mergers. The course will count toward both the major and the minor in economics.
Economic analysis of professional and collegiate sports: organization, input and output markets, the public sector, decision-making, and public policy. ECON 460 Issues in Sports Economics (3) This course is designed to provide students the opportunity to examine and understand the sports industry. The course integrates the perspectives of various economic areas (i.e., industrial organization, managerial economics, labor economics, public economics) with those of marketing, finance, and accounting into a single approach to industry analysis. It provides students with an appreciation for the unique realities of the professional and amateur sports enterprise. Case studies and assignments are developed so students can apply theoretical and statistical concepts to real sports activities and/or policies. Students have the opportunity to complete case analyses in teams, present their results and suggestions to the class, and respond to questions and critical reviews by their peers.
This is an applied econometrics course intended to introduce students to the tools used in contemporary empirical microeconomic research inside and outside of academia. Emphasizing aspects of data sciences that are relevant for economics research, we will cover econometric methodology commonly used to analyze labor markets, issues arising in policy evaluations, and firm-and-consumer behaviors in industrial organization as well as use of computational software packages such as R or Julia. Specifically, students will study how to (1) work with data using modern statistical software (data science), (2) separate correlation from causation (causal inference), and (3) use various identification strategies for making quantitative causal statements using data (econometrics).
Russia is the largest country on earth. It has had a major influence on world events, especially during the Soviet period. The Soviet period represents the greatest economic experiment ever undertaken. Russia has had a vast imperial experience, and its economy has proven capable of producing nuclear weapons and space exploration. Yet, its economy remains dependent on natural resources. Russia is a literary, nuclear and geopolitical superpower but not an economic superpower. This juxtaposition is unique. The aim of the course is to provide a review of Russian economic history together with main concepts explaining the peculiarities of economic and institutional development of the country. The course combines historical narrative with formal economic analyses. We will utilize both an economics and a history perspective. We will explore the development of the Russian economy in the Tsarist period, the abolition of serfdom and Russian industrialization before the Russian Revolution, and we will explore the economic history of the Soviet period. We will also explore the interaction of economic history with social history. The course will conclude by examining the myriad economic and social difficulties encountered in transitioning from a socialist to capitalist economy.
experimental methods and experimental design and uses this framework to inform a careful examination of the strengths and limitations of economic theory in explaining actual human behavior in economic situations. When economic theories do not seem to fit the data the course draws on findings from other social sciences such as psychology and sociology to explore reasons for divergence of theory and practice. The content begins with a brief history of experiments in economics. Then it outlines key features of experimental design and an introduction to the basics of game theory, which are commonly utilized in experiments. After establishing the basics, the course investigates decision making under uncertainty and compares how various theoretical explanations predict actual human decisions. We then discuss bargaining experiments and bargaining theory. The course concludes with a description of common behavioral influences and biases in judgment and decision making. There is a common theme throughout the course showing how theory and experiments can be used in conjunction to improve of understanding of economic behavior.
There are many resource allocations that are not unilateral decisions but instead require approval from two sides of the market. This course provides the theoretical constructs for the analysis of matching in market environments. Following a review of game theory, the course develops the theory of matching. The topic at large is introduced by the seminal paper in matching "College Admissions and the Stability of Marriage" by Gale and Shapley. Other peer-reviewed literature on the topic will be discussed. Topics that follow include economic applications in the areas of employment, marriage, college admissions, human organ donations, medical residents, and other current topics. Within each of these topics, analysis is performed to study the following questions: 1) What are the preferences and incentives of all of the market participants involved in the matching market? 2) What was the method in which matching occurred? 3) Is this end result Pareto efficient and stable? 4) If the result isn't Pareto efficient, could another method or algorithm be used to improve efficiency? 5) Does the efficient outcome yield equal (or near equal) gains to all market participants involved, or is there a large discrepancy in the utility of the participants post-matching? For example, in a marriage matching algorithm, do women end up much happier than men? In medical residencies, do hospitals end up with larger gains than the doctors? Within certain topics, specific models are also discussed, including the Beveridge curve, Cobb-Douglas matching functions, labor market frictions, Nash bargaining games, feasibility sets, disagreement points, egalitarian and non-egalitarian bargaining solutions, and risk aversion. This course is an applied economics course with relevance to the areas of microeconomics, macroeconomics, and labor economics. The course objective is for students to learn the analytical methods for understanding the economics of matching. Students will develop skills in applying matching models and analysis to practical situations. The course will count toward both the major and minor in economics.
Forecasting time series, using linear regression models and econometric software; useful forecasting models; financial and seasonal time series; trends. ECON 483 Economic Forecasting (3)This course is an applied econometrics course, and will seek to provide students with hands-on experience in forecasting. The goal of this course is to teach the students how to forecast time series, using econometric software, and what kinds of models are useful for that purpose. Topics to be covered include a review of regression analysis, with applications to forecasting; introduction to an econometric software package; introduction to time series regression analysis, with applications; the Box-Jenkins approach to time series modeling and forecasting; modeling and forecasting seasonal time series; deterministic and random trends, and how to distinguish them; and modeling and forecasting volatility of financial time series. The course will count toward both the major and the minor in economics. This course is one of a series of 400-level seminars in each of seven broad areas of economics; this is a seminar in econometrics.
Theory of international trade and investment; effect of commercial policy on trade and income distribution; multinational corporations and international trade.
The course will provide a foundation for students in the computational methods used to numerically solve and simulate economic models and program econometric estimators.
The course will provide continued exposure to the computational methods used to numerically solve and simulate economic models and program econometric estimators.
Measurement of income; theories of consumption, investment, and money holdings; static determination of income and employment; introduction to dynamic analysis.
This course is a workshop designed to guide students through the process of conducting independent research towards successful completion of the M.A. Scholar Essay project. The course will provide students with broad instruction on research objectives such as formulating a research question, constructing an economic analysis, and writing up results for an academic audience. Emphasis will be placed on breaking the task of completing a research essay into discrete, and manageable tasks.
This course is a workshop designed to guide students through the process of conducting independent research towards successful completion of the Master's Scholarly Essay. The course will provide students with broad instruction on research objectives such as formulating a research question, constructing an economic analysis, and writing up results for an academic audience. Emphasis will be placed on breaking the task of completing a research essay into discrete, manageable tasks.
This course combines the use of econometric software and real economic data sets to study actual empirical questions in economics. Topics covered include instrumental variables, panel data methods, estimation of nonlinear models, discrete choice models, regression discontinuity techniques and nonparametric method for data analysis. Each of the topics will have one or more empirical applications. The economic applications include production function estimation, returns to education, investment models, consumer demand models, and transportation modes.
Foundations of current research in game theory. ECON 534 Game Theory (3) This is an advanced graduate course in game theory and its applications to economics. The course content is mathematical in nature and emphasizes formal statements of key propositions and their proofs. It begins by presenting two alternative ways in which a game may be represented: the extensive (or tree) form and the strategic (or normal) form. The relationship between these two representations is studied and the key idea of a strategy is introduced. Pre-equilibrium notions of dominance, iterated dominance and rationalizability are studied. Nash's fundamental theorem on the existence of equilibrium in finite games is proved. Strategic form based refinements of Nash equilibrium, including perfect, proper and stable equilibria are considered. Extensive form based refinements, including subgame perfection and sequential equilibrium are also considered and compared. Harsanyi's conception of a game of incomplete information is introduced. Other subjects covered include repeated games and the folk theorem, bargaining, common knowledge. Additional topics of current interests may also be covered.
The course will provide an overview of existing guidelines published by experienced researchers in various subfields of economics (applied microeconomics, economic development, econometrics, industrial organization, international trade, macroeconomics, and microeconomic theory) on the topics of developing research ideas, writing papers for publication in refereed economic journals and presenting research findings in conferences (shorter presentations) and seminars (longer presentations). Models of successful writing in recent top economic publications will be discussed. Each student will then have an opportunity to apply these guidelines and practice their writing and presentation skills based on their original research. Presentations of research will be discussed with peers and research ideas will be tested within and across subfields of economics, thus preparing students for the demands of academic research exchange and academic publication in economics.
Post-Keynesian reformulation of quantity and Keynesian theories of money; liquidity and general equilibrium approaches; current issues in theory and policy.
Formal courses given on a topical or special interest subject which may be offered infrequently; several different topics may be taught in one year or term.
