Description
Book SynopsisThis challenging book extends standard economic theory to take into account the presence of heterogeneity among economic agents. It argues for an approach to economic analysis which regards the economy as an interactive system with heterogeneous agents and not simply a system which treats aggregates as some 'representative' individual.
The authors consider that no sector of the economy can be treated as behaving like a single individual and each sector should be modelled as a complex interactive system. They apply this approach to many macro- and micro- analyses including monetary policy and firms, technological innovation and the insider-outsider model. In conclusion the authors find that this approach proves much more fruitful in explaining empirical phenomena than much of the existing theory. The result of this approach to economic theory which encompasses many realistic features, provides a vision of the economy which is not at odds with common sense, but which does not abandon rigorous analysis.
This important book will be welcomed by those interested in both macro and micro economic theory.
Trade Review'Interested economists without a background in this material . . . will find a clearly presented introduction to modelling macroeconomics based on social interaction and heterogeneous agents. . .' -- Jenny Miner, Journal of Economic Literature
Table of ContentsContents: Introduction 1. Interaction and Market 2. Tutorial on Social Interaction Economics 3. Multilevel Interactions with a Keynesian Flavour in a Stochastic Macroeconomic Model 4. Economic Theory and ‘Conformism’ 5. Firms’ Size and Monetary Policy 6. Agents’ Heterogeneity and Coordination Failure 7. Compartmental Analysis of Economic Systems with Heterogeneous Agents 8. Macroeconomic Fluctuations and Heterogeneous Agents 9. Fluctuations and Growth Due to Technological Innovation and Diffusion 10. Hysteresis and Economics 11. An Insider-Outsider Model with Non-Trivially Heterogeneous Labour Force 12. Agents’ Heterogeneity, Financial Fragility, and Learning Index
