Course unit details:
Political Economics
| Unit code | ECON60492 |
|---|---|
| Credit rating | 15 |
| Unit level | FHEQ level 7 – master's degree or fourth year of an integrated master's degree |
| Teaching period(s) | Semester 2 |
| Available as a free choice unit? | Yes |
Aims
The purpose of this course is to study some key concepts and models in the literature on political economics, with a focus on redistribution and the electoral process of democratic countries
Learning outcomes
At the end of this course, students should be able to demonstrate:
- Knowledge and understanding of the main tools used to formally represent political economics problems; and how and when to apply the various existing models, as well as the main limitations of them.
- Intellectual skills to critically assess theoretical arguments, and to interpret, organize and understand real world problems involving economics and politics.
- Practical skills to derive theoretical results and to present them to small audiences.
- Transferable skills and personal qualities to express political¿economic concepts, reasoning, and intuitions to non-specialized audiences.
Syllabus
1. Electoral Competition: candidate location; policy commitment; electoral uncertainty; political motivations; power; ideology; policy differentiation (convergence); median voter result; political instability.
Recommended Reading
¿ Drouvelis, M., Saporiti, A., Vriend, N., Political Motivations and Electoral Competition:
Equilibrium Analysis and Experimental Evidence, Games and Economic Behavior, Vol. 83
(2014), pp. 86–115.
¿ Gehlbach, S., Formal Models of Domestic Politics, Cambridge University Press (2013).
Chapters 1-2.
2. Programmatic Redistribution: income taxation; indirect preferences over policies; political equilibrium; redistribution; inequality gap (median vs mean); median voter; social preferences; inequality aversion.
Recommended Reading
¿ Meltzer, A., Richards, S., A rational theory of the size of government, Journal of Political Economy 89 (5), (1981), pp. 914-927.
Teaching and learning methods
Lecture and Tutorial
Assessment methods
| Method | Weight |
|---|---|
| Written exam | 100% |
Recommended reading
Acemoglu, D. Egorov, G., Sonin, K., A Political Theory of Populism, Quarterly Journal of
Economics, (2013), pp. 771–805.
Study hours
| Scheduled activity hours | |
|---|---|
| Lectures | 20 |
| Tutorials | 5 |
| Independent study hours | |
|---|---|
| Independent study | 125 |
Teaching staff
| Staff member | Role |
|---|---|
| Alejamdro Saporiti | Unit coordinator |
Additional notes
Timetable
Lecture: Monday 3pm-5pm,
Tutorial: Monday 5pm-6pm,