Principles Of Macroeconomics Research Articles

Justice Matters: Equality-Efficiency Tradeoff in Principles of Macroeconomics

Students who are trained in standard macroeconomics often prioritize economic efficiency over other values, such as justice. Most of them believe that to achieve higher efficiency, a society needs to sacrifice economic justice. In other words, there exists a tradeoff between equality and efficiency. In my Principles of Macroeconomics class, I therefore create lectures and assignments including self-reflections and group discussions to persuade students to question the value of economic efficiency and justice. The assignments raise the awareness of students about economic justice as another essential value in society. The goal is to encourage students to rethink macroeconomic policies critically, reevaluate their moral biases, and cultivate their moral compass when dealing with ethical dilemmas. JEL Classification: A22, B0, D63, E0

The methodology of defining scarce resources of economy

The purpose of this work is to develop a methodology for identifying scarce industries based on the system of “Input — Output” tables. The theoretical basis of the study is the basic assumptions and principles of macroeconomics and economic theory. With close interconnection of all spheres of the economy, sectors that are in a state of deficit can have a negative impact on other elements of the system, including those that are strategically important for the state. The reason for the deficit is the inability to meet the consumer demand by the industries that experience the lack of production capacity. Thus, the timely identification of such industries is a crucial task for government agencies in order to promptly develop a set of preventive measures. The paper proposes the method to determine the optimal price, the deviation from which signals the rise or fall in scarcity. The calculation of the optimal price is carried out by finding the point of maximum added value of the industry for a given demand function. The model takes into account factors such as its elasticity and changes in the level of economic costs of production. Model experiments demonstrate the effect of a change in the slope coefficient of this function on the dynamics of the scarcity of industries. We also carried out the analysis of average annual and cumulative deficit in Russia, as well as the peculiarities of the behavior of each of the sectors presented in the “Input — Output” tables. Finally, the authors assess the degree of influence of global financial shocks, such as the 2008 crisis, on industries with elastic and inelastic demand. This model can be applied by the public sector in analyzing the current economic situation and creation of a financial development strategy.

Developing Students’ Analytical and Data Presentation Skills Using Infographic Assignments in Principles of Macroeconomics and Economics of Immigration

Developing Students’ Analytical and Data Presentation Skills Using Infographic Assignments in Principles of Macroeconomics and Economics of Immigration

Tangoing economics in a virtual classroom: recommendations for large classes instructors

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about dramatic changes to the classroom and has forced teachers on all levels and of all subjects to critically re-evaluate pedagogical strategies. Such transformative changes have created new opportunities and posed new challenges to college instructors, especially those who teach large lecture hall classes. This article provides practical guidance and useful instructional recommendations on how to create a highly collaborative experience for first-time learners of economics in a virtual classroom. Using the experience of teaching principles of microeconomics and macroeconomics to large lecture hall classes of mostly first-year college students, the author provides valuable insights on how to connect to a larger number of students, motivate them to 'do' economics, and stimulate their critical thinking and quantitative reasoning.

An Analysis of the Economic Solutions as in the Kutadanta Sutta: A Case Study of Chim Shop Chai Project

This Article aimed to analyze the economic solutions of the Chim Shop Chai Project in accordance with the Kutadanta Sutta’s principles. This is a qualitative as documentary research. It has been conducted through Thai Tipitaka scriptures, books, documents, academic papers, and various researchers. The findings showed that 1) Solving the economic problems based on the Kutadanta Sutta principles was to solve macroeconomic problems. The way to do this was to provide funding to 3 groups of people who are diligent in their careers, namely farmers, merchants, and government officers. 2) The Chim Shop Chai Project aimed to stimulate the economy through domestic tourism promotion. 3) the economic solution analysis of the Chim Shop Chai Project in accordance with the Kutadanta Sutta’s principles showed that the Chim Shop Chai Project has the same principles as the Kutadanta Sutta in 2 cases: (a) The government wanted to alleviate economic trouble for their people by giving money to the people. (b) The government wants economic circulation according to the principles of macroeconomics resulting in increased purchasing power in the country. For the differences, It is found that the government did not select participants in to the program according to the occupational groups but allowing all professions to participate in the program freely. Not only participants who are low income, but the high-income people can also join. The government therefore does not promote production factors for farmers in any way. When this happens, it is still not to encourage those who are diligent in their careers as exemplified in. Only merchants who are registered for this project will benefit directly from this project.

Demand-side management in the Smart City concept

In the context of the widespread adoption of information and communication technologies, the key objectives are to enhance the effectiveness of infrastructure management in certain agglomerations and cities, as well as to optimize the use of municipal energy resources. The paper deals with the opportunities and avenues for the use of price-dependent electricity demand management in today’s wholesale and retail electricity markets in Russia within the framework of the Smart City concept. Methodologically, the paper rests on the principles of macroeconomics and the Smart City concept. In the study, the methods of analysis, synthesis, systematization, statistical observation, etc. are applied. The information base of the research includes empirical data on the parameters of uneven electricity consumption by various municipal facilities. The research results show that city electric vehicles, city lighting, pumping stations, electric heating systems, etc. are major electricity consumers, which allow managing the costs incurred in purchasing electric resources at municipal level. The authors develop a model and an algorithm for price-dependent electricity consumption management of municipal facilities in the Smart City concept and test them using the case of the trolleybus network of the city of Chelyabinsk. The study proves the expediency of performing price-dependent electricity consumption management of municipal infrastructure in the Smart City concept.

Enhancing Online Learning Through Technology: Case Study of Principles of Macroeconomics at Central Connecticut State University

Enhancing Online Learning Through Technology: Case Study of Principles of Macroeconomics at Central Connecticut State University

Welcome to macroeconomics!

This article is a first day of class exercise that presents a controversial contemporary economic policy as the entry point for the study of principles of macroeconomics. The process and tools for critical thinking are presented and used to assess the macroeconomic outcomes of the (2017) Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). Critical thinking involves a two-stage process for testing propositions about the economic system, one logical and the other empirical. The exercise introduces students to primary data sites, statistical analysis, and the use of critical thinking to make inferences about hypotheses associated with the impacts of the TCJA. The outcomes are, first and foremost, student appreciation and empowerment to self-test propositions about macroeconomic policies and their effects. Second, they will (should) understand the relevance of macroeconomic policy in affecting the material well-being of their lives. Third, students will have the expectation that macroeconomics is about active student learning from the outset, and that each day will be filled with discovery. Together, these outcomes create a classroom learning environment where students, working with the teacher, play a pivotal role in the educational process.

The Thucydides Trap as an Alternative Explanation for the US–China Trade War

The current trade war between the USA and China is perceived to be motivated by the US desire to curtail the bilateral trade deficit, on the assumption that reducing the deficit boosts economic growth. This flawed proposition indicates gross misunderstanding of the national income identity and the basic principles of macroeconomics. The imposition of tariffs will not reduce the trade deficit as the assumptions and conditions required for a smooth working of the process are unrealistic and counterfactual. The notion of an economic Thucydides trap is put forward to explain why the trade war is motivated by US apprehension about China’s rising economic power.

An Analysis of the Effect of Student Prepared Notecards on Exam Performance

Allowing the use of student-prepared notecards has been suggested as a way to increase student performance, with the literature showing mixed results. By allowing students to utilize a notecard on some, but not all, tests in principles of macroeconomics, we examine the effect notecards have on student performance. Our analysis utilizes a novel method of controlling for student aptitude and instructor biases in each sample. The results show improvements in performance both as a whole and by level of question based on Bloom’s taxonomy and question difficulty levels. In addition, we find notecard usage by students leads them to become more optimistic and realistic about their test performance, as well as leading students to study more efficiently.

Do crib sheets improve student performance on tests? Evidence from principles of economics

This study uses individual-level data to examine whether the use of a crib sheet can boost the test performance of students in principles of economics. We find that crib sheets have the potential to significantly improve student performance, an outcome that is largely attributable to performance in principles of macroeconomics. Based on our findings, there is no clear indication that cooperative crib sheets, as implemented in this experiment, are more effective than individual crib sheets. In fact, we find that the collaborative process may hinder performance. We find that female students do worse on tests generally and that students with a higher academic classification and more academic talent tend to do better. However, we don’t find that crib sheets heterogeneously impact performance within these groups.

Quantile regression analysis of cooperative learning effects

This paper examines a quasi-experiment designed to analyze the effects of cooperative learning on exam grades earned in Principles of Macroeconomics. In this quasi-experiment, the researcher taught three sections of Principles of Macroeconomics during one term and randomly chose two treatment sections and one control section. Students in all sections engaged in active learning by completing problem sets. Students in the treatment sections were instructed to share and explain their answers to problem sets with peers. The results from OLS regression analysis suggest students in the treatment sections earned higher grades on the Final Exam. Quantile regression analysis suggests a positive relationship between treatment and Final Exam grades for high-achieving students and a negative relationship between treatment and grades earned on Exam 1 and Exam 2 for low-achieving students.

Team-based learning and student performance: Preliminary evidence from a principles of macroeconomics classroom

This paper surveys the evolution of student grades, assessment of student learning, and student engagement in Principles of Macroeconomics over a four-year period, where the method of instruction was changed from traditional lecture to Team-Based Learning (TBL). Findings are that under TBL, student grades were higher, both overall and on a final examination that remained unchanged across the two instructional formats. In addition, TBL students performed better on three measures used to assess student learning of basic course concepts of supply and demand, exchange rates and net exports, and economic policy. Further, students in the TBL sections report more engagement and better ability to think independently, as measured by student course evaluations. Overall, the study suggests that the Principles of Macroeconomics classroom is adaptable to the TBL format, and that TBL is correlated with positive outcomes for students. In addition to these results, this paper includes discussion and examples illustrating the process through which TBL was implemented.

Implementing Recorded Lectures: Education Production Function Analysis in Economics Online Courses

Instructor created recorded lectures were introduced to two principles of macroeconomics and two principles of microeconomics online courses to improve student outcomes. Using the education production function, both time spent and access were modeled using a first difference regression and Generalized Method of Moments estimators. Data for this study, covering nine weeks for each course, were collected from the course management system, book publisher and college registrar. Results show that more time spent in the course management system and book publisher’s homework system lead to increased grades while accessing recorded lectures had mixed results.

Implementing Instructor Videos: An Empirical Test of Changes in Economics Online Courses

Online courses create an environment where lecture delivery and immediate feedback from students can be significantly less than that of face-to-face courses. To address these issues, a set of video lectures were introduced to principles of economics students during the fall of 2015. We compare student grades across twenty-six principles of economics courses to determine if the increase in capital was beneficial to students. Using a logit model, results show that the increased capital increased the predicted probability of passing principles of macroeconomics by almost 20 percent, but had no significant effect for students taking principles of microeconomics.

Patience and Principles

I estimate discount rates for 73 students across three sections of Principles of Macroeconomics at Kenyon College in the Spring 2015 semester. I find that a representative student with a discount rate one standard deviation above the mean earns roughly 2.28 fewer percentage points in the course than the average student. While the magnitude of the effect is small, the result is significant and remains so even after controlling for other observables.

Book Review: Principles of Macroeconomics – Activist vs. Austerity Policies

Book Review: Principles of Macroeconomics – Activist vs. Austerity Policies

Sustainability in the Curriculum and Teaching of Economics: Transforming Introductory Macroeconomics

Present models of economic growth primarily focus on the role of expenditures as captured in the commonly cited economic indicator, gross domestic product (GDP), where GDP is defined as the sum of final goods and services sold within a country’s natural borders. Noting that a country’s expenditures are referred to as “aggregate expenditures” and that the majority of spending is specific to consumption or consumer spending, especially in the United States where this spending category is nearly two-thirds of annual GDP (other expenditure categories for GDP include investment spending, government spending and foreign spending as proxied by net exports), there exists a significant relationship between consumer expenditures and macroeconomic growth, justifying the standard acceptance of consumption-based expenditures as being a significant driver of economic expansion. Given the consumption and growth relationship, consumption values and behaviors have a significant impact on economic outcomes as well as other parameters including the environment and social and economic equity, where the latter are defined as relating to disparities between groups within a country, as well as across countries. Following a discussion of the impact of consumer-led growth on sustainability parameters: the environment, economic and social equity, this paper provides an explicit linkage between the measure of economic progress in universal use, GDP, and the degradation to common global resources, connecting the endogeneity present between the modeling of economic growth and the values and behaviors that support the outcome of the very same growth. A discussion of the present teaching methods specific to introductory macroeconomics provides the foundation for an innovative, replicable, and grant-funded case study for introducing sustainability. The curriculum variants discussed are not in widespread use and at present, there are no standard textbooks for the instruction of Principles of Macroeconomics that explicitly include sustainability and provide sustainability-based economic parameters for alternative evaluation to standard economic growth as presently and singularly enumerated in GDP. The value-augmenting outcome of the sustainability inclusive curriculum case study is captured in a qualitative assessment of student reaction and absorption of sustainability as a value and behavior catalyst and provided in summary form.

Using NPR's Planet Money Podcast in Principles of Macroeconomics

Unfamiliar with aggregate concepts like gross domestic product and inflation, many introductory students struggle to understand the big ideas in macroeconomics. Macroeconomic educators typically respond with boring lectures aimed at bringing students up to speed; or, by jumping to the interesting topics their students are not yet prepared to consider. In an effort to combat this problem, I have incorporated NPR’s Planet Money podcast into my Principles of Macroeconomics course. I describe the podcast and provide a list of episodes others might find useful. In my experience, the Planet Money podcast is well received. Students enjoy listening to the assigned episodes. They report that it made them more interested in the principles course, helped them understand the relevance of macroeconomics, and increased their understanding of many macroeconomic issues. Most students also feel more comfortable discussing macroeconomic issues having listened to the podcast. And nearly half of those students surveyed say they will continue listening to the podcast after the course ends.

Principles of Macroeconomics

Principles of Macroeconomics