Issue 33, September 2023
A proposal for explaining interest rate determination in intermediate macroeconomic courses
Autores: Capó Parrilla, Javier (Universitat de les Illes Balears, Departament d’Economia Aplicada, Facultad de Economía y Empresa. Cra. de Valldemossa, km 7.5. 07122 Palma (Illes Balears), España.) | Lozano, Javier (Universidad de las Islas Baleares. Departamento de Economía Aplicada. Carretera de Valldemossa km. 7,5, 07122. Palma. Islas Baleares. España.)
For several decades now, the interest rate has been the main instrument of monetary policy. Even the new monetary policy instruments that emerged in the aftermath of the Great Recession operate through their effects on interest rates. This paper makes a proposal to explain the determination of interest rates in intermediate macroeconomics courses. It covers a broad set of determinants-both monetary policy (conventional and unconventional) and exogenous-and helps to understand the operation of monetary policy both before and after the great recession. The proposal can be attached as a module to a standard explanatory model of income and inflation determinations where it is assumed that the interest rate is the instrument of monetary policy.
A Flipped Classroom Experience in Higher Education: When The Simpsons Meet Acemoğlu
Autores: Feria, Julia (Universidad de Huelva. Departamento de Economía. Plaza de la Merced 11, 22002 Huelva, España) | Golpe, Antonio A. (Universidad de Huelva) | Vides, José Carlos (Universidad Complutense de Madrid - ICEI. Departamento de Economía Aplicada, Estructura e Historia, Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Empresariales. Campus de Somosaguas, 28223 Pozuelo de Alarcón, Madrid)
In the present study, the implementation of a Flipped Classroom approach is demonstrated in fourth-year and first-year students at the Complutense University of Madrid and the University of Huelva, respectively. To do this, we relied on a reading by Daron Acemoğlu on inequality and an episode of The Simpsons that addresses a cross-cutting theme. After completing the activity, a questionnaire was administered to gather students' perceptions regarding the implementation of this teaching strategy. Finally, decision trees were used to characterize the preferences and perceptions of the students based on the usefulness of the strategy in the subject, the usefulness of the strategy in the topic, and the effort dedicated. The results obtained indicate that age is a defining factor, as well as gender. The data obtained for young men (first-year students) are particularly interesting, as they have a more positive perception of the use of this activity.
An online experiment on the knowledge, opinions and tax preferences with students from the University of Zaragoza
Autores: Cazcarro Castellano, Ignacio (Universidad de Zaragoza. Facultad de Economía y Empresa, gonesa para la Investigación y el Desarrollo (ARAID) e Instituto Universitario de Investigación Agroalimentario de Aragón (IA2). Universidad de Zaragoza) | Cruz Bello, Fernando (Vicerrectorado de Educación Digital y Formación Permanente de la Universidad de Zaragoza) | Rodrigo Sauco, Fernando (Universidad de Zaragoza. Facultad de Economía y Empresa e Instituto Universitario de Investigación en Empleo, Sociedad Digital y Sostenibilidad (IEDIS). Universidad de Zaragoza) | Sanz-Arcega, Eduardo (Universidad de Zaragoza. Departamento de Economía Aplicada, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales y del Trabajo. Calle Violante de Hungría 23, 50.009-Zaragoza, España.)
Book Review of “Markets, State, and People: Economics for Public Policy”, by Diane Coyle
Autores: Domínguez Martínez, José Manuel (Universidad de Málaga. Departamento de Economía Aplicada (Hacienda Pública, Economía Política y Política Económica). Calle Ejido, 6. 29071 Málaga, España) | Molina Garrido, Carmen (Universidad de Málaga. Departamento de Economía Aplicada (Hacienda Pública, Política Económica y Economía Política), Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Empresariales.)
This paper reviews Diane Coyle's "Markets, State, and People: Economics for Public Policy". Although it is a text designed for non-specialists, it is a highly valuable and interesting work for use in an undergraduate course on Public Sector Economics. The book offers a broad, systematic, rigorous and illustrative overview of the main issues related to the role of the public sector in the economy. The exposition of the theoretical foundations is combined with the consideration of situations and cases taken from reality. Unlike traditional orthodox approaches, the market and authority do not appear as opposing instances, necessarily excluding each other, but can complement each other in an attempt to improve social welfare. The existence of failures is not exclusive to the private sector, within an approach that starts from a view that does not a priori grant primacy to the market or to the public sector.