BPUB 951 - Political Economy

Institution:

University of Pennsylvania

Subject:

Description:

Inman. Prerequisite(s): PHD course with advanced microeconomics. This course will introduce the students to the basic models of formal political economy and methods for empirically estimating those models from policy data, both for the developed and developing economies. Topics to be covered will include Downsian electoral competition and median voter politics, theories of legislative politics including minimum winning coalition and universalistic (pork-barrel) politics, models of lobbying and political corruption, models of executive influence in legislative settings. Particular attention is paid to the role of formal (constitutional) and informal (non-constitutional) institutions as they determine policy outcomes in democratic societies, including majoritarian (first-past-the-post) and proportional representation systems of elections, partisan (party) and non-partisan (special interest) legislatures, executive agenda-setting and veto powers, federal and unitary forms of governance, and finally, the role of judicial review. Policy applications will focus on fiscal policy (taxes, spending, and debt), though students should feel free to apply the analysis to other public policies of interest. Students should have a firm understanding of micro-economic theory and applied econometrics.

Credits:

3.00

Credit Hours:

Prerequisites:

Corequisites:

Exclusions:

Level:

Instructional Type:

Lecture

Notes:

Additional Information:

Historical Version(s):

Institution Website:

www.upenn.edu

Phone Number:

(215) 898-5000

Regional Accreditation:

Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools

Calendar System:

Semester

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