nep-pke New Economics Papers
on Post Keynesian Economics
Issue of 2009‒01‒03
five papers chosen by
Karl Petrick
University of the West Indies

  1. Post Keynesian economics - how to move forward By Engelbert Stockhammer; Paul Ramskogler
  2. "Prospects for the U.S. and the World -- A Crisis That Conventional Remedies Cannot Resolve" By Wynne Godley; Dimitri B. Papadimitriou; Gennaro Zezza
  3. Education, Training and Economic Performance: Evidence from Establishment Survival Data By William Collier; Francis Green; Young-Bae Kim; John Peirson
  4. On the Economics and Biology of Trust By Fehr, Ernst
  5. Inflation Targeting in Brazil: a Keynesian Approach By Luiz Carlos Bresser-Pereira and Cleomar Gomes da Silva

  1. By: Engelbert Stockhammer (Department of Economics, Vienna University of Economics & B.A.); Paul Ramskogler (Department of Economics, Vienna University of Economics & B.A.)
    Abstract: Post Keynesian Economics (PKE) is at a cross road. The academic climate at universities has become more hostile to survival and the mainstream has become more diverse internally. Moreover, a heterodox camp of diverse groups of non-mainstream economists is forming. The debate on the future of PKE has so far focussed on the relation to the mainstream. This paper argues that this is not an important issue for the future of PKE. The debate has overlooked the dialectics between academic hegemony and economic (and social) stability. The important question is, whether PKE offers useful explanations of the ongoing socio-economic transformation. PKE has generated valuable insights but it offers little on important real world phenomena such as supply-side phenomena like the increasing use of ICT and the globalisation of production, social issues like precarisation and the polarization of income distribution or ecological challenges like climate change. It is these issues that will decide the future of PKE.
    JEL: B20 B50 B59 E12
    Date: 2008–12
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wiw:wiwwuw:wuwp124&r=pke
  2. By: Wynne Godley; Dimitri B. Papadimitriou; Gennaro Zezza
    Abstract: The economic recovery plans currently under consideration by the United States and many other countries seem to be concentrated on the possibility of using expansionary fiscal and monetary policies alone. In a new Strategic Analysis, the Levy Institute's Macro-Modeling Team argues that, however well coordinated, this approach will not be sufficient; what's required, they say, is a worldwide recovery of output, combined with sustainable balances in international trade.
    Date: 2008–12
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lev:levysa:sa_dec_08&r=pke
  3. By: William Collier; Francis Green; Young-Bae Kim; John Peirson
    Abstract: This paper analyses the savings behaviour of natives and immigrants in Germany. It is argued that uncertainty about future income and legal status (in case of immigrants) is a key component in the determination of the level of precautionary savings. Using the German dataset, we exploit a natural experiment arising from a change in the nationality law in Germany to estimate the importance of precautionary savings. Using difference-in-differences approach, we find a significant reduction in savings and remittances for immigrants after the easing of citizenship requirements, compared to the pre-reform period. Our parametric specification shows that introduction of the new nationality law reduces the marginal propensity to save gap between natives and immigrants by up to 80%. These findings suggest that much of the differences in terms of the savings behaviour between natives and immigrants are driven by the savings arising from the uncertainties about future income and legal status rather than cultural differences.
    Keywords: Training; Education; Human capital; Profit, Skill
    JEL: J24 J1 L21
    Date: 2008–12
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ukc:ukcedp:0822&r=pke
  4. By: Fehr, Ernst (University of Zurich)
    Abstract: In recent years, many social scientists have claimed that trust plays an important role in economic and social transactions. Despite its proposed importance, the measurement and the definition of trust seem to be not fully settled, and the identification of the exact role of trust in economic interactions has proven to be elusive. It is still not clear whether trust is just an epiphenomenon of good institutions or whether it plays an independent causal role capable of shaping important aggregate economic outcomes. In this paper, I rely on a behavioral definition of trust that enables us to relate it to economic primitives such as preferences and beliefs. I review strong biological and behavioral evidence indicating that trusting is not just a special case of risk-taking, but based on important forms of social preferences such as betrayal aversion. Behaviorally defined trust also opens the door for understanding national and ethnic trust differences in terms of differences in preferences and beliefs, and it suggests ways to examine and interpret a causal role of trust.
    Keywords: trust, preferences, beliefs, biological basis
    JEL: C7 D00 D2 D7 D8
    Date: 2008–12
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp3895&r=pke
  5. By: Luiz Carlos Bresser-Pereira and Cleomar Gomes da Silva
    Abstract: O Regime de Meta de Inflação se Tornou Dominante na Formulação de Políticas dos Bancos Centrais nos Últimos 15 Anos. a Teoria Subjacente, Particularmente a Regra de Taylor, Pode ser Vista como uma Competente Generalização Desse Comportamento. de um Ponto de Vista Keynesiano, Ele Será Aceitável se Encararmos a Taxa de Juros de Equilíbrio como Apenas uma Convenção Variável e se a Combinarmos ou com uma Taxa de Câmbio ou com uma Meta de Emprego. no Caso do Brasil, Porém, Além Dessa Ressalva Teórica e da Condição do Duplo Mandato, o Regime de Metas de Inflação Enfrenta um Problema de Incoerência. esta é uma Política que se Destinava a ser Utilizada na Administração da Política Monetária, não na Mudança do Regime de Política Monetária . a Política de Metas de Inflação foi Introduzida no Brasil em 1999 como um Substituto para a Âncora Cambial, que Havia Sido Usada Desastrosamente entre 1995 e 1998. Durante Muitos Anos, o País Havia Enfrentado uma Armadilha de Alta Taxa de Juros / Taxa de Câmbio Valorizada E, Portanto, Precisava Mudar seu Regime de Política Monetária Antes de Eventualmente Adotar o Regime de Meta de Inflação. Essa Mudança, que Começou com a Flutuação de Janeiro de 1999, Deveria ter Sido Completada com Reformas Específicas (Fim da Indexação dos Serviços Públicos e dos Próprios Juros Básicos). no Entanto, em Lugar de Desenvolver uma Estratégia para Reduzir a Taxa de Juros, o Governo Continuou a Definir a Inflação como o Principal Problema a ser Enfrentado e Adotou uma Política Formal de Metas de Inflação. a Conseqüência é que Desde 1999 Essa Política se Tornou o Obstáculo que a Economia Brasileira Enfrenta para Escapar da Armadilha da Taxa de Juros
    Date: 2008–10–16
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fgv:eesptd:158&r=pke

This nep-pke issue is ©2009 by Karl Petrick. It is provided as is without any express or implied warranty. It may be freely redistributed in whole or in part for any purpose. If distributed in part, please include this notice.
General information on the NEP project can be found at http://nep.repec.org. For comments please write to the director of NEP, Marco Novarese at <director@nep.repec.org>. Put “NEP” in the subject, otherwise your mail may be rejected.
NEP’s infrastructure is sponsored by the School of Economics and Finance of Massey University in New Zealand.