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Recessions and Depressions Understanding Business Cycles
Todd A. Knoop
ISBN: 0-275-98162-2
ISBN-13: 978-0-275-98162-4
312 pages
Praeger Publishers
Publication: 7/30/2004
List Price: $55.00 (UK Sterling Price: £37.95)
Availability: In Stock
Media Type: Hardcover
Also Available: Paperback Ebook
Trim Size: 6 1/8 x 9 1/4
Subjects:
Description: The economy of any nation is an intricate web of relationships among the factors determining supply and demand—and everything that affects them, from inflation to taxes to the stock market. The study of business cycles attempts to explain why economies grow and contract, experiencing periods of prosperity and pain. Consistent with the popular conception of economics as the dismal science, economists secretly long for recessions (periods of negative growth) and depressions (severe contractions), not because they enjoy their devastating impact on human welfare, but because these downturns serve as excellent laboratories for observing what happens when markets break down. Despite over two centuries of debate, no one has yet definitively unlocked the secrets of economic downturns and how they might be prevented.

In Recessions and Depressions Todd Knoop traces the evolution of business cycle theory, from the classical model, which preceded the Great Depression, through the ground-breaking ideas of John Maynard Keynes, Milton Friedman, and their followers. He examines the strengths and limitations of each approach, in terms of explaining the impact of such factors as government policy, money supply, labor productivity, and wages. In the process, he presents an accessible introduction to what makes the economy tick, and offers new insights into understanding such historic events as the Great Depression, as well as more recent ones, such as the Asian meltdown in the 1990s, the financial crises in Latin America, and the U.S. recession of 2001, from which the United States is still recovering. Knoop reminds us that economists' track record in forecasting business cycles leaves much to be desired, and the quest to fully understand what causes economic downturns—and their effects on individuals and families—continues.
Table of Contents:
  • Figures
    Tables
    Preface
    The Facts of Business Cycles
    Why Study Business Cycles?
    Describing Business Cycles
    The Macroeconomic Theory of Business Cycles and Forecasting
    Early Business Cycle Theories
    Keynes' and Keynesian Theory
    The Monetarist Model
    The Rational Expectations Model
    Real Business Cycle Models
    New Keynesian Models
    Macroeconomic Forecasting
    Business Cycles in the United States
    The Great Depression
    Postwar Business Cycles in the U.S.
    A "New Economy" in the U.S.?
    Modern International Recessions and Depressions
    The East Asian Crisis
    Argentina and the Role of the International Monetary Fund
    The Great Recession in Japan
    Conclusions: What We Know and Do Not Know about Business Cycles
    Appendix: Brief Comparison of Major Business Cycle Theories
    Glossary
    Bibliography
    Index
About the Author: TODD A. KNOOP is Associate Professor of Economics and Business at Cornell College, where his primary research and teaching interests include macroeconomic theory, tax reform, and monetary policy. He has published many articles in such journals as Economic Inquiry and the Southern Economic Journal.
LCC Class: 338
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