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Abstract: This paper extends a stylized AD/AS macroeconomic model to a setting in which inflation dynamics impinges on the sentiment of the public toward the future course of the economy. As individuals are allowed to exchange information on their personal mood and to persuade each other through repeated interactions, waves of optimism and pessimism emerge endogenously. The model is then used to analyze the stabilizing effect of alternative monetary policy rules. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The aim of this paper is two-fold: it first evaluates some of the psychological insights offered by Keynes in his economic theories, and secondly it weighs up these insights in the light of recent research in behavioral and experimental economics. We found that many of the psychological ideas set forth by Keynes in his economic works, especially in The General Theory, have a defensible behavioral foundation and fit broadly the actual behavior of economic agents in the real world as suggested by recent empirical evidence. As a consequence, we argue that Keynesian economics can benefit from this interaction, especially for issues related to judgment under uncertainty and building solid microfoundations for macroeconomics. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: There is substantial evidence in the psychology and sociology literature that social relationships promote happiness for the individual. Yet the size of their impacts remains largely unknown. This paper explores the use of shadow pricing method to estimate the monetary values of the satisfaction with life gained by an increase in the frequency of interaction with friends, relatives, and neighbours. Using the British Household Panel Survey, I find that an increase in the level of social involvements is worth up to an extra £85,000 a year in terms of life satisfaction. Actual changes in income, on the other hand, buy very little happiness. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Research on the intra-household economy has gained great impetus over the last 20 years. There has been particular interest in the ways in which financial resources are distributed among individual household members. This, in turn, has led to the delineation of different systems of financial management. Methodologically, work in this domain has been informed by large-scale surveys and interview studies. The present paper contends that, due to their analytic reliance on the individual perceiver, current methods cannot fully account for the contradictions that are raised by key findings in the field. It is argued that a discursive approach, with the critical language awareness associated with it, might not only be able to reconcile some of these paradoxical findings but also provide the basis for a more critical understanding of the social–psychological processes underlying household money management. The potential contribution of a discursive approach to studying the intra-household economy is illustrated by drawing on group interview data. This calls attention to (a) the inherent variability of people''s accounts regarding their money management practices and (b) the identity processes involved in such ‘money talk’. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper provides the first psychological and attitudinal profile of the Irish economics profession. The aspects covered fall into three broad categories: the first category relates to the attitudes of the respondents to issues relating to the economy and the role of government; the second set seeks responses regarding perceptions of the economics profession and professional economists in Ireland; the third set of questions are drawn from various international survey programmes and survey social, political, ethical and psychological attributes and attitudes. The results display a picture of a group who believe their discipline to be relevant to policy and society, who are outward looking in terms of international collaboration, who perceive the discipline to be somewhat stale and who desire a greater focus on interdisciplinary work. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

While there is incontrovertible evidence that agents are imbued with cooperative values, considerable ambivalence exists about the rationale for cooperation. Some analysts contend that cooperative behavior is well within the realm of the Benthamite quest for utility maximization, but others perceive cooperation as driven by complex socio-cultural and psychological phenomena. In this paper, we propose an evolutionary-based explanatory framework that uses both insights to explain how cooperative behaviors are formed, as well as how they might change over time. On the basis of evidence from a traditional African society, we show how tension between utility maximization and cultural norms could shape cooperative behaviors in ways that are not easily deciphered by standard economic theory. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]