Search

In this paper, we develop the idea of the Sraffian Supermultiplier, presenting it as an alternative to traditional neoclassical thought about economic growth and economic policy. Thus, a brief introduction is made about the importance of economic growth for classical economists, followed by the development of Harrod's model and the different solutions that have raised for sorting the problem of instability. Finally, we present the supermultiplier model of Serrano together with international empirical evidence that supports it and some proposals of economic policy are made. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economics is a policy discipline that deals with the problems of social organization and the general good. It co-evolves with circumstances, and it is historically contingent. The world to which economic policies are ultimately addressed is a complex system. Yet economists seeking to develop appropriate policies are necessarily guided by simplifications and heuristics. The question before the discipline is to decide what sort of simplification is best suited to the task. In the spirit of modern science, this paper argues that appropriate generalizations, simplifications, heuristics, and principles are to be derived from a study of the actual world. While these may deploy mathematical tools and draw on insights from the behavior of mathematical systems, the latter by themselves are inadequate, especially where they start from the dead dogmas of the neoclassical mainstream: ex nihilo nihil fit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the heir of political philosophy, the English post-commercialist economy and the French physiocracy, since its origin, political economy has integrated production, circulation and the theory of value into the theories of the modern state and capitalist society. In this paper it is argued that, in political economy, the conceptions of the State and of society are related to the theory of surplus. It criticizes the marginilist notion of society, emphasizes the centrality of the theory of surplus, explained in the conflict between State and society, and identifies the limits of the principle of effective demand of Keynes and Kalecki. The main conclusion is that economic policy recommendations based on inflation, wage deflation and containment of public spending goals seek to increase the surplus in the crisis and recession phases of the economic cycle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents evidence that macroeconomic accounting models helped to anticipate the credit crisis and economic recession, whereas equilibrium models, ubiquitous in mainstream policy and research, did not. This study traces the intellectual pedigree of the accounting approach as an alternative to neo-classical economics, and the postwar rise and decline of flow-of-funds models in policy use. The paper includes contemporary case studies of both types of models, and considers why the accounting approach has remained outside mainstream economics. Finally, it provides constructive recommendations for revising financial stability evaluation methods, and advocates an 'accounting of economics'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper suggests that the best way to evaluate and drive development policy is to understand the root causes that explain the political economy restrictions limiting the developmental effectiveness of multilateral and bilateral institutions. To mitigate the deleterious effects of collective action restrictions this paper recommends a twopronged interdependent strategy: an enhanced use of ex ante evaluation in all interventions and through a more intensive application of the paper trail approach; and changes of constitutional rules or macro-institutional conditions which determine the decisions made in all institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]