 |
Atlantic
Economic Journal |
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| VOLUME 31 |
JUNE
2003
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NUMBER 2
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E-Mail: iaes@iaes.org
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| Table of Contents | Submission | Manuscript Instructions | Anthology Instructions | Membership | Web Founders | Endowment Fund | IAES Officers | Front Page | |||
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This paper compares Cournot's exposition of elasticity
of demand and the theory of the firm with modern exposition. In the case
of the theory of the firm, this comparison is accomplished by translating
the modern textbook exposition into Cournot's mathematics. It is demonstrated
that Cournot's exposition translates into current usage in all cases but
that the degree of convolution in the translation process varies from
case to case. For elasticity, only trivial algebraic manipulation is involved.
For monopoly, the inverse derivative rule translates Cournot's exposition
into current usage. The case of perfect competition is much more complicated.
Although Cournot gets the same result as current theory, his mathematics
doesn't translate directly into current usage. But a comparison in the
text that doesn't appear in his mathematics suggests that he considered
the modern derivation but chose to use another derivation. One reason
for doing this is rather obvious. It fits better into Cournot's unified
approach to the theory of the firm. It might also be judged more elegant
and mathematically precise. With regard to oligopoly, Cournot provided,
in a different contest, the analytical structure that is now used in IO
to analyze differentiated oligopoly. It is reiterated that Cournot had
a general method for finding equilibria for non-cooperative games and
was aware of the fact that his method was more general than a single application.
The relation between Cournot equilibria and Nash equilibria is discussed.
(JEL B13, B21); Atlantic Econ. J. 31(2): pp. 123 - 132, Jun. 03. ŠAll
Rights Reserved.
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The authors examine current textbook representations of
Coase's analysis of negative externalities [Coase, 1960]. Standard treatments
identify Coase's ideas with Stigler's Coase Theorem: a zero transaction
cost world in which efficient solutions emerge automatically, regardless
of legal rules and the initial allocation of rights. Yet Coase's seminal
paper breaks from this mode of analysis. The authors use this intellectual
history to distinguish two approaches to negative externalities: blackboard
(Pigou, Stigler, Samuelson) and Coasean. They survey 45 microeconomics
textbooks and find that 80 percent misrepresent Coase's arguments. They
argue that a Coasean approach increases students' critical thinking skills
by challenging them to move beyond simple laissez faire or interventionist
solutions. (JEL A2); Atlantic Econ. J. 31(2): pp. 133-145, Jun. 03. ŠAll
Rights Reserved.
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This paper employs survey data to examine the determinants
of immigration-policy preferences among ten advanced economies. Ordered
probit specifications suggest that skill level is a robust determinant
of immigration-policy preferences and that less-skilled workers are more
likely to express a preference for policies that restrict immigration.
The results also suggest that older individuals, members of trade unions,
and those who classify their political ideology as conservative are more
likely to favor limiting immigration while non-citizens are less likely
to favor such policies. Individual country-level regression results vary,
in particular with regard to the influence of trade union membership,
which is a robust determinant of immigration-policy preferences for both
measures of skill in only a subset of nations. (JEL F0, F2, H0); Atlantic
Econ. J. 31(2): pp. 146-158, Jun. 03. ŠAll Rights Reserved.
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This article is concerned with the statistical modeling
of the daily structure of the nominal exchange rates in the U.K., Germany,
and Japan, as well as their returns in relation to the U.S. dollar by
means of using fractionally integrated techniques. Using a version of
the tests of Robinson [1994] that permits us to tests I(d) statistical
models, the results show that the three time series are I(1), finding
strong evidence against fractional integration and against mean reversion.
Similarly for the return series, all them appear to be stationary I(0)
with no evidence of fractional integration of any degree in any series.
(JEL C22); Atlantic Econ. J. 31(2): pp. 159-173, Jun. 03. ŠAll Rights
Reserved.
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The objective of this paper is to evaluate the determinants
of bilateral trade flows among 47 countries and, particularly, the effects
of preferential agreements between several economic blocs and areas: European
Union (EU), North-American Free Trade Area NAFTA), Caribbean Community
(CARICOM), Centro-American Common Market (CACM), and other Mediterranean
countries (MEDIT). The period under study is from 1980-99. The authors
estimate a gravity equation that allows the comparison of the weight of
the influence of preferential agreements and also, infers the relevance
of other determinants of bilateral trade flows such us geographic proximity,
income levels, population, and cultural similarities. The analysis is
undertaken for each year of the sample in order to capture the temporal
evolution of the impacts on trade of the different variables considered.
Using the estimation results as a base, trade potentials resulting from
new free trade agreements are calculated. (JEL F14); Atlantic Econ. J.
31(2): pp. 174-187, Jun. 03. ŠAll Rights Reserved.
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Dynamic Consistency and Monopoly GREGORY E. GOERING AND MICHAEL K. PIPPENGER |
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A wide variety of papers study the time consistency issues and commitment problems associated with imperfectly competitive durable goods manufacturers who sell their output. Using a simple two-period model the authors show that this sort of commitment problem may occur even if the monopolist produces non-durable output. The model assumes consumers maximize their utility through the choice of a non-durable consumption good and saving through an asset that provides future returns and consumption flow. The analysis indicates that non-durable goods manufacturers with market power will wish to announce future prices that are sub-optimal (dynamically inconsistent) when the period is reached due to the impact on consumers' wealth constraint and current purchasing behavior. Thus, the so-called durable-goods monopoly commitment problem may also occur in non-durable goods industries. The model suggests that any type of intertemporal linkage may lead to time consistency and commitment problems for imperfectly competitive firms. (JEL D4); Atlantic Econ. J. 31(2): pp. 188-194, Jun. 03. ŠAll Rights Reserved. |
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BRUCE M. SKOORKA AND CAROL M. CONDON |
| This paper identifies factors that are important in explaining recent trends in undergraduate economics majors. The decline in economics majors during the 1990s has caused concern in the profession because the declining trend had been attributed to a general decrease in student interest in the economics major. This study uses least squares regression techniques to explain trends in economics bachelor degrees granted by 20 New Jersey colleges and universities during the 1979-2000 period, with implications for the national level. The results show that trends in economics majors are primarily a function of demographic trends, business cycle conditions, and the desire to attend post-graduate professional school. None-the-less, the authors conclude that the declining trend in economics majors in the 1990s is still cause for concern because understanding economic principles is important in the development of a globally competitive workforce. (JEL I29); Atlantic Econ. J. 31(2): pp. 195-204, Jun. 03. ŠAll Rights Reserved. |
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