Structural changes in the modern macroeconomy

Catalog description

Over the past few decades, the U.S. as well as other advanced economies have undergone a secular transformation: while overall economic growth has slowed down mildly, the fruits of economic growth have been spread unevenly. Income and wealth inequality have increased, the labor share of national income has decreased, economic activity has increasingly concentrated at a few superstar firms, and business dynamism has declined. The observed developments have generated strong reactions across the political spectrum. Is the American Dream really still alive, or might it be that a large fraction of the population simply will no longer be able to productively contribute to society? The aim of this course is to introduce advanced undergraduate students to the main empirical facts and theoretical tools involved in studying these developments through a macroeconomic lens. We will carefully analyze the data using the tools of applied (micro-)economics and interpret them using basic macroeconomic models. Interested students should have taken ECON 2100 , ECON 2200 , ECON 2300 ; MATH 1400 , MATH 1410 , or MATH 1510. Some basic knowledge of regression analysis is also recommended.