Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Competition In Economic Theory And The Skew In U.S. Corporate Wealth Creation, Marc H. Pentacoff

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Historical studies of U.S. capital markets show a dramatic skew in the distribution of corporate wealth. This thesis investigates the evolution of economic thought related to realistic models of competition, seeking to find the most suitable theory of competition to explain this skew in U.S. corporate wealth creation. The incorporation of realistic elements into the static theories of competition leads to theoretical difficulties in the early 20th century. Another line of thought developed non-equilibrium dynamic models of competition, culminating in Schumpeter. In Schumpeter, firms seek to manage the uncertainty f rom rapid change induced by innovation and increasing returns by …

The Size Of The Multiplier: Comparing Alternate Views After The Great Recession, Daniel Focht

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis reviews the major theoretical frameworks and their outlook on the government spending, its effectiveness, the implied size of the multiplier and how they differed in empirical studies. This is followed by an estimation of the government multiplier for the major U.S. fiscal policy, namely the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), after the Great Recession of 2007-2009. Own estimation of the size of the multiplier is presented using a standard SVAR model based on New Keynesian approach for time period between 2009 and 2018. In addition, following the classical economic theory, the multiplier is recalculated in the absence …

Rethinking The "Marginal Revolution" In The History Of Economic Thought: A Brief Examination Of The Marginal Utility Theory Before And In The 1870s, Ding Ning

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The "Marginal Revolution," a well-known event in the history of economic thought, challenged the mainstream classical political economy and introduced new methods to economic study. The "Marginal Revolution" marked the rise of the Marginal Utility School and pushed the formulation of neoclassical economics. Because marginal utility is the core concept of the "Marginal Revolution," this thesis studies the origin of marginal utility theory by examining figures such as Bernoulli, Bentham, Dupuit, and Goseen, and the utility theory with its related topics of Jevons, Menger and Walras in the 1870s. This thesis considers the significance of the "Marginal Revolution," with particular …

Macroeconomics After The Great Recession: Consensus Or Conflict?, Hailiang Xu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Unlike microeconomics where there are relatively few disagreements, the field of macroeconomics has always been the arena of several competing theories. Despite that history of conflict, in the late 1980s during the Great Moderation, the New Classicals and the New Keynesians reached an agreement, known as the New Consensus during the Great Moderation. For decades, the New Consensus has dominated macroeconomic theory and policymaking not only in the U.S., but also throughout the world. After many years of calm, however, the 2007-2008 subprime mortgage crisis and its consequent Great Recession demonstrated that how fragile that consensus was.

While the debate …

An Inquiry Into The Metaphysical Foundations Of Mathematics In Economics, Edgar Luna

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Economics is supposed to fall somewhere between a hard science and a social science. During the last half century, economics has become highly mathematical trying to mimic physics. The purpose of this study is to look at the metaphysical statements linked to mathematical models, specifically, Game Theory. In doing so, it will be demonstrated that Game Theory, as part of neoclassical economics, engages in analysis which can be categorized as metaphysical, with real metaphysical implications. In categorizing the metaphysical assumptions of neoclassical economists/game theorists we will see how much of their analysis is consists in a reductive, implausible metaphysical view. …