69065 - Economic history

Academic Year 2017/2018

  • Moduli: Vera Negri (Modulo 1) Patrizia Battilani (Modulo 2)
  • Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures (Modulo 1) Traditional lectures (Modulo 2)
  • Campus: Bologna
  • Corso: First cycle degree programme (L) in Economics and Finance (cod. 8835)

Learning outcomes

The course aims at providing students with an up-to-date understanding of the main aspects and trends of the world economy during the 20th and early 21st centuries. At the end of the course students should understand the origin of the most important economic institutions and the features of the economic cycles so far experienced by the world economy. Topics addressed in more detail will include the failure of the command economies, the construction of the European Union, the evolution and transformation of financial systems, the globalization, the regulation of labour market in different countries.

Course contents

The course is organized in two parts, the first taught by Vera Negri Zamagni and the second by Patrizia Battilani.

In the first part, the student will be offered a general overview of the evolution of the world economy across the XIXth and XXth centuries, with special focus on Europe. The topics covered are the following:

  1. The pre-industrial economy and the preparation of the industrial take-off
  2. The British industrial revolution and the process of imitation
  3. The second industrial revolution, the rise of the Usa and the gold standard
  4. World War I and its effects
  5. The 1929 crisis and World War II
  6. Reconstruction and the new international economic order: Bretton Woods, IMF, Gatt, World Bank and the Marshall Plan
  7. The golden age (1950s to 1973)
  8. The process of economic integration in Europe
  9. The return of instability and the financialization of the world
  10. New protagonists: the rise of Asia.

In the second part, the student will have the opportunity to deepen his understanding of specific issues including the impact of the three waves of globalization on world economy, the role of state intervention in economic development, the relationship between economic growth and financial systems.

The topics covered are the following

1. The first globalization

2.The second e third globalization

3.The rising and fall of state-owned enterprises

4. The emergence of competition laws

5. The building of modern welfare systems

6. The developing of National Financial System

7. The capitals of capital: the rise of stock exchanges

8. Financial innovations and deregulation over the last decades

Readings/Bibliography

For the part taught by prof. Vera Zamagni the textbook is V. Zamagni, An economic history of Europe since 1700, Agenda, 2017.

For the part taught by Patrizia Battilani a reading list will be made available at the beginning of the course

Assessment methods

The exam is aimed at evaluating the skills and the critical abilities developed by the students

The exam is composed of a written exam, with 6 open questions.

It is not possible to bring books, personal notes or electronic devices in the exam. Registration for the exam is compulsory, and students have to register through [https://almaesami.unibo.it/almaesami/welcome.htm] according to the general rules of the School of Economics, Management and Statistics.

The mark is out of 30 points, and the minimum required to pass the exam is 18 / 30.

Office hours

See the website of Patrizia Battilani

See the website of Vera Negri