Showing papers on "Economic problem published in 1985"

Attributing Presidential Responsibility for National Economic Problems

Abstract: Several recent studies of economic voting have challenged a central assumption of the reward-punishment theory of retrospective voting, that voters hold the incumbent party responsible for all manner of economic fluctuations. Our research expands on prior work in several ways by specifying and testing a model of the way people attribute responsibility to presidents for national economic problems. We find that during the 1982 recession, President Reagan was spared the wrath of the reward-punishment theory among individuals who felt that economic problems were more the fault of the previous administration, that presidents have relatively little control over the causes of inflation and unemployment, and that past presidents were unable to control these same problems. Implications for retrospective voting theories and the outcome of the 1982 midterm elections are discussed.

Resources and Economic Development: An Institutionalist Perspective

Abstract: My central purpose here is to present a comprehensive argument in favor of the proposition that an institutionalist perspective can be of considerable analytical power in understanding the current economic problems of the so-called less-developed countries (LDCs). And, because of the importance of natural resources to those developing economies, we will also look at resource problems from an institutionalist perspective. This case for an institutionalist perspective will not be made in the abstract; instead, it will be against a backdrop of received economic doctrine, which we know as neo-classicism, or orthodoxy. I want now to turn to a brief discussion of the development problem as I define it. I will then describe an institutionalist perspective on this problem, drawing contrasts with neo-classical thought where appropriate.

Puerto Rico’s Economic Future

Abstract: The concentration on the development of productive resources and industries through collective action is a relatively recent phenomenon in Puerto Rico and is a reflection of the growing awareness in the island of the nature of the basic social and economic problems, coupled with the growth of democratic institutions and social and political responsibility.

Agriculture and Developing Countries in the GATT

Abstract: The world currently faces a number of economic problems. These include the large global economic imbalances that may prove to be unsustainable; international poverty, where projections suggest that it is unlikely that the Millennium Development Goals will be achieved; and stalled multilateral trade talks that threaten a return to more aggressive protectionism. Although very unfashionable, a new allocation of Special Drawing Rights by the IMF could help to alleviate all of these problems. Clearly, it is most unlikely that one simple policy will resolve all the world’s economic ills, but, at the same time, if the benefits from it could be substantial and the costs minimal, it is worthy of consideration.

Economy, Polity, and Reform in China

Abstract: China's drive for economic modernization, begun in earnest in December 1978 and later accelerated, most recently through the "Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Reform of the Economic Structure" of October 20, 1984, really is a drive for comprehensive political and economic modernization.' Changes in economic organization and policies are accompanied by major alterations in the role of ideology, party leadership, bureaucracy, law, and foreign policy, thus raising the interesting question of how the political and economic sides of these reforms relate to one another. A brief but critical review of six prominent interpretations in the literature suggests the broad conclusion that important political outcomes in the long term (more than a decade) will depend on economic results. This simple thesis stands in contrast to alternatives tying the ultimate success of the reforms (in a period usually left unspecified or generalized "through the end of the century") to a number of developments along the way, including the length of time the current leadership remains in control; the speed with which state, Communist Party, and military bureaucracies can be populated with a new generation of middle-level officials supportive or at least tolerant of the reformers' ideals; and the degree to which a more democratic and intellectually conducive climate grows in China to form a cultural context for a revised economic system that gives emphasis to individual initiative, exertion, and achievement.2 Three propositions emphasizing the impact of economic outcomes upon the shape of politics are shown to be compelling, while three others are found to be crippled by problems of either logic or evidence. While the result might fall short of full economic determinism, it does raise confidence in the overall hypothesis that prospects for more liberal politics in China depend as much as any other factor upon how effectively reform policies address key economic problems. Called into question are arguments that China might grow less closed, personalistic, or bureaucratic as a consequence of direct attacks, however persistent, against such erstwhile social evils.3

Models of the UK economy : a second review

Abstract: Through comparative analysis of the various models of the U.K. economy and their forecasts, this book describes the differences between these models, presents evidence on which to evaluate them, and provides important surveys of specific economic problems.

Trends, Prospects, and Strategies for Black Economic Progress

Abstract: As we approach the closing years of the 1980s, it is clear that, for better or worse, the focus of the struggle for black equality is shifting from traditional civil rights issues to economic development. And although people often debate how best to remedy some of the black community’s most persistent economic problems (for example, high unemployment and the narrowing, but still wide, income gap between blacks and whites), few people have attempted a dispassionate analysis of the broad scope of public and private economic options facing blacks. Too often, the debate is polarized by arguments either for increasing governmental assistance or for almost totally eliminating it. In this article, noted economist Andrew Brimmer strikes a much-needed balance. First, he scrutinizes the trends for blacks (and whites) regarding income and participation in the labor market. Then, instead of painting a picture in pure black and white, he suggests a blending of strategies, some calling for less reliance on the federal government, others requiring a strengthening of the nation’s wavering commitment to affirmative action.

Slowdown: Global Economic Maladies

Abstract: In this stimulating volume, Andrew Brody offers a provocative and original analysis of the current crises which enmesh virtually all countries of the world. He pulls together a number of existing theories and developes a uniquely different approach to the theory of growth and economic cycles. He analyzes the dynamics of economic growth: the period post World War II prosperity has given way to a cycle in which 'growth scissors' threaten the foundations of global economy. All those concerned with economic problems will find this volume disturbing but essential reading.

The Economics of Industrial Society

Abstract: This book is a stimulating and original introduction to the economics of industrial society. It is intended for use as a student text, but will also be of interest to all those - whether students or teachers - looking for new ways of understanding the economic problems of industrialised countries. It provides an effective critique of current economic theories, and develops an original model of the economics (whether neo-classical, Marxist, or Keynesian) of modern industrial society. Throughout the book the analysis is oriented towards the solution of problems in the real world, and towards explaining the operation of economic institutions in different countries. The work looks at the way individual markets operate, the determination of foreign exchange rates, the problem of unemployment, and the fiscal and monetary policies needed to tackle unemployment. This book analyses the case of an industrial country entirely dependent on other countries for its raw materials.

Money and Inflation

Abstract: On the basis of theoretical considerations and on the evidence of real-world economies, Frank Hahn demonstrates in unequivocal terms that Monetarism offers an implausible solution to the most pervasive economic problems. He confronts the central issue of current economic theory by making the case that the growth of the money supply is not a necessary cause of inflation, as the Monetarists have assumed. And he contends that inflation is in any case not the overwhelming satanic force disrupting society and the economy that the strict Monetarists think it to be on theoretical grounds and so many others feel it to be in terms of practical economic realities. It is the tax systems, he points out, that are the real influence at work against the economies of the industrialized nations.

The Case for global economic management and UN system reform

Abstract: Those who consider the global economic problem currently serious and potentially a crisis are also concerned that global institutions are insufficiently powerful to deal with it. Both the technical and the political difficulties of global institutional restructuring will appear insurmountable until they are outweighed by the perceived costs of another economic crisis. The problems of linking multilateral trading and financial negotiations within the existing institutional frameworks are indeed formidable. No one can expect a single agency to concern itself with the global management of both finance and trade; even the aborted International Trade Organization would not have had that width of responsibilities. There is nonetheless a perceived need not only to increase the roles of some of the existing agencies and either to coordinate or to combine their secretariats but also to form some higherlevel guiding body with an element of discretionary power, which would establish the major lines of shortand medium-term global economic management. Only the UN system could or should fill this gap. Given the balance of economic and political forces in each relevant agency or department, no existing part of the system would be allowed to do so. Should the 1984 economic upturn prove short-lived, however, the resulting economic crisis may finally force changes in attitudes. It is prudent to have feasible alternatives ready. Proposals abound for the reform of UN economic and social institutions, but the failure of the 1975-77 exercise to make significant progress has produced skepticism about renewed attempts.' Improved efficiency is itself insufficient justification for reform, not only because it appears to involve increased power (unacceptable to some of the parties) but also because the motivation to negotiate in forums provided by the United Nations has not