Please select from the titles below:

• An Alternative Pedagogy for Economic Modelling
• Monetary Deregulation and Consumption: Evidence from Certain Components of Consumption
• UK Monetary Policy, Earnings Growth and Labour Market Structure 1989-1998
• Abstinence, Excess, Success?: Alcohol, Cigarettes, Wedlock and Earnings

Back to the Past Issues' Index

An Alternative Pedagogy for Economic Modelling (p.1)
by Alfredo O Moscardini and Kevin A Lawler

There is an awareness amongst teachers of economic modelling that new teaching methodologies and pedagogies are needed. This paper examines the weaknesses of traditional teaching methods and suggests that System Dynamics would be a useful supplement to the learning process for typical economics undergraduates. A brief description is given of the key features of the System Dynamics methodology and an illustrative example has been chosen. This is the multiplier-accelerator model of Samuelson. The System Dynamics approach is compared with more traditional approaches and several pedagogical points are emphasised.

Top of page

Monetary Deregulation and Consumption: Evidence from Certain Components of Consumption (p.15)
by Nicholas Apergis

This paper investigates the impact of the monetary deregulation in Greece that occurred in 1988 on the relationship between real money balances and real credit and certain components of consumption, namely, durables and non-durables. The Granger-causality methodology is used to examine this relationship over the 1958-1987 periods. The results demonstrate that the deregulation has affected only the consumption of durable goods.

Top of page

UK Monetary Policy, Earnings Growth and Labour Market Structure 1989-1998 (p.21)
by Anne Gasteen, John Houston and Darinka Asenova

The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) sets UK interest rates to control inflation paying particular attention to earnings growth as measured by the Average Earnings Index (AEI). In October 1998, a revised AEI indicated that wage inflation had been overestimated bringing the conduct of monetary policy into question. This index was given credence by the popular belief that structural change in the labour market has reduced the earnings growth rate. However, a further revised AEI in March 1999 suggested wage inflation had been underestimated. This paper investigates why labour market changes have not suppressed earnings growth, assessing the influence of structural factors on the AEI. A new series of occupation-weighted, earnings indices from Labour Force and New Earnings Surveys’ data is computed. The failure to adequately adjust for changes in UK labour market structure (in particular, increased service sector employment and greater female participation) is observed to have slightly underestimated earnings  growth.

Top of page

Abstinence, Excess, Success?: Alcohol, Cigarettes, Wedlock and Earnings (p.37)
by Sam Cameron and Damian Ward

The effects of smoking, drinking and marriage on individuals’ earnings are estimated for the UK labour force for 1974, 1984 and 1994. Smokers are found to incur a wage discount; drinkers a wage premium and married individuals a wage premium with a discount for the first child. Such results are interesting given numerous governments’ policy interests in the activities of smoothing, drinking and the institution of marriage.

Top of page

Page last modified on 22 January 2001