- Docente: Massimo Ricottilli
- Crediti formativi: 6
- SSD: SECS-P/01
- Lingua di insegnamento: Inglese
- Modalità didattica: Convenzionale - Lezioni in presenza
- Campus: Bologna
- Corso: Laurea Magistrale in Economics (cod. 8408)
Conoscenze e abilità da conseguire
At the end of the course student has knowledge of fundamental issues of economic development from a theoretical viewpoint. Basic questions will be asked and a framework for some answers are provided. What hurdles are there to a steady path of economic development? Which the pitfalls? Whence success? Although cast in a historical context, these issues will be framed in an analytical approach: history matters but theoretical simplification is unavoidable.
Contenuti
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Course Outline
Topics
- Introduction: The singularity of economic development.
Sustained economic development: an unprecedented occurrence.
- The dynamics of extensive growth.
Population dynamics and available surplus. The economy's growth rate: the simple model.
Consumption per head, investment and the rate of growth.
Diminishing returns.
Rent and the critical threshold.
Surplus labour.
The Malthusian crisis.
- A crucial question: is development necessary?
The answer is no. Crises do not necessarily lead to virtuous reactions and virtuous circles.
- The Structure of the Economy and Structural change.
A multisectorial view of the economy: from a simple two sector
economy to a full fledged n-sector structure.
Generalising the growth process
Sraffa and the basic system.
The classical view: Ricardo and Marx
Technical improvement.
- Technical progress.
The quintessence of sustained growth: general characteristics. Why is it important?
Kaldor and the post-Keynesian school.
The neo-classical approach: new growth theories
The evolutionary perspective: positive feedbacks and cumulative processes.
- Innovation and diffusion
Path dependence and technological trajectories.
Bounded rationality.
Learning
Patterns of searching.
- Diffusion as self-organisation
The new models of diffusion.
- Development theory and developing countries.
Catching up and falling behind.
Constraints to growth.
Testi/Bibliografia
References
- The singularity of economic development.
Landes D.(1999). ‘The Wealth and Poverty of Nations: Why some are so rich and some so
Poor. W. W. Norton, New York.
The Cambridge Economic History.
Diamond J. (1997): ‘Guns, Germs and Steel. The Fates of Human Societies.' W.W. Norton
& Company, New York.
Diamond J. (2004) : ‘Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed'. Viking and
Penguin Books.
- Sen A. (1985): ‘Commodities and Capabilities'. North Holland, Amsterdam.
- The dynamics of extensive growth.
Ricottilli M. (1993): Teoria dello Sviluppo Economico'. La Nuova Italia Scientifica, Roma.
Thirwall A.P. (1989): ‘Growth and Development: with special reference to developing
countries'. Palgrave, Macmillan, London.
- Is development necessary?
Ricottilli M. (1993):‘ Perspectives on Development'. in Vaggi G. (ed.): ‘ From the
Debt Crisis to Sustainable Development'. Macmillan, London.
- Structural Change.
Pasinetti. L. (1981): ‘Structural change and economic growth : a theoretical essay on the dynamics of the wealth of nations', Cambridge University Press.
Goodwin R.M. (1974): ‘The Use of Normalised General Co-ordinates in Linear Value and Distribution Theory.' In Polenské K.R., Skolka J.V. (eds): ‘Advances in Input-Output Analysis'. Proceedings of the Sixth Conference on Input-Output Techniques, Wien.
Kurz H.D., Salvadori N. (1995):' Theory of Production: a long period analysis.' Cambridge University Press.
Lewis A. (1954): ‘Economic Development with Unlimited Supplies of labour'. ‘The
Manchester School of Economic and Social Studies' Vol.2, n.2.
Sraffa P.(1960) ‘ Production of
Commodities by Means of Commodities. Cambridge
University Press.
- Structural change as a disequilibrium path.
Hicks J. (1973): ‘Capital and Time.' Clarendon Press, Oxford.
Ricottilli M. (1993): ‘Teoria dello Sviluppo Economico'. La Nuova Italia Scientifica, Roma.
Ricottilli M. (2008): ‘Division of Labour, Traverse and Evolving Structures', in Hagemann H., Scazzieri R., (eds.): ‘Capital, Time and Transitional Dynamics'. Routledge, London.
- The neo-classical approach
Romer D. (2001): ‘Advanced Macroeconomics'. McGraw Hill, Boston.
Aghion P., Howitt P.(1998): ‘Endogenous Growth Theory', MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass.
- The evolutionary approach
Ricottilli M. (1994):'Technical Progress, Innovative Activity and Development'. The
International Journal of Technology Management. Vol. 9, no.3/4.
Dopfer K. (2005): ‘The Evolutionary Foundation of Economics'. Cambridge University Press.
Kauffman S. (1993): ‘ The Origin of Order'. Oxford University Press.
Metodi didattici
See the English version
Modalità di verifica e valutazione dell'apprendimento
See the English version
Strumenti a supporto della didattica
See below the English version
Link ad altre eventuali informazioni
http://www.lmec.unibo.it/LMEC/default.htm
Orario di ricevimento
Consulta il sito web di Massimo Ricottilli