Following rapid economic growth in recent decades, Asia and the Pacific experienced an impressive reduction in extreme poverty, but this drop was not uniform and achievements are still incomplete. Vulnerability to natural disasters, the increasing impact of climate change and economic crises should all be taken into account. There is also a need to consider the multidimensional nature of poverty and the non-uniformity of the decrease across different ethnic groups. This book explores the Asian 'poverty miracle' and argues for the development and use of an Asia-specific poverty line. This is a timely and multidimensional assessment of the much neglected issues of, and links between, poverty, vulnerability and ethnicity in Asia. It will be of great interest to lecturers and researchers of Asian development and economics, along with policymakers, public and private institutions, NGOs and international aid agencies. Contributors include: V. Berenger, S.R. Chakravarty, N. Chattopadhyay, T. Fujii, C. Gradin, L. Hohfeld, S. Klasen, J. Silber, H. Waibel, G. Wan

There was a time when theologians and economists knew much more about each other's work than they do today. This book is dedicated to reconnecting two disciplines that study different dimensions of the human condition. The well respected contributors - economists, theologians, some both - explore the interaction of Christian theology and market economics, from the earliest times to the modern day. There is much to surprise, puzzle and edify serious students of theology and economics as well as the merely curious. This unique work has a historical time-span reaching from Aristotle to the modern day, thus appealing to those interested in the history of ideas and economic thought as well as the links between theological and economic thought. Economists studying the intellectual roots of their discipline, as well as Christians researching the links between Christian beliefs and the worldly philosophy governing everyday commercial lives will also welcome it.

The context for this book is the increasingly complex relationship between economic theory and competition law which gives rise to lively political and academic debate on the direction competition law should take in a more global and innovation-oriented market place. The authors adopt a comparative, research-orientated approach, taking into account different situations in the US, Europe, Japan and transition and developing countries. They investigate the impact of economics on the objectives of competition law in various fields - restrictive agreements, unilateral restraints and merger control - and on the effectiveness of enforcement in a given legal and judicial system. Economic Theory and Competition Law is an insightful resource for law and economics scholars. Legal practitioners in the field of competition law will also value this book.

Part of The Elgar Series on Central Banking and Monetary Policy, this book explores the relationship between central banking, monetary policy and the economy at large. It focuses on the specific relationship between central banking, monetary policy and social responsibility as central banks wake up to new realities. The book examines this relationship not only in connection to the economic, monetary and financial impact of the so-called 'unconventional' monetary policies, but also in connection to the functioning of today's democracies. A new framework and model for central banking is proposed in this rethinking of monetary policy, and the role of central banks as institutions in democracies is considered. Scholars and students interested in central banking and monetary policy, the issue of social responsibility and the relationship between central banks and democracy will benefit from the ideas presented by the editors and authors of Central Banking, Monetary Policy and Social Responsibility.

This Companion of nineteen essays, accompanied by the editor's introduction, investigates aspects of the philosophical foundations of Adam Smith's thought as well as his economic analysis and approach to policy. The authors view Adam Smith's work as an interconnected system of thought, which incorporates both moral philosophy and economics. His earlier work in moral philosophy, The Theory of Moral Sentiments receives significant consideration and the contributors also discuss important connections and insights into the sort of economics that Adam Smith is more widely known for in his Wealth of Nations. This book is distinguished from other collections of essays on Adam Smith in that all of the contributors are economists, and the coverage is determined by the interests of contemporary economists and scholars in the history of economic thought. A wide audience will find this Companion of great value and interest, including economists, the general economics profession, political scientists and political theorists, and philosophers with an interest in Adam Smith's work as well as historians of economics. Advanced undergraduate and post-graduate students in these fields will also warmly welcome the book.

This book uses machine-learning to identify the causes of conflict from among the top predictors of conflict. This methodology elevates some complex causal pathways that cause civil conflict over others, thus teasing out the complex interrelationships between the most important variables that cause civil conflict. Success in this realm will lead to scientific theories of conflict that will be useful in preventing and ending civil conflict. After setting out a current review of the literature and a case for using machine learning to analyze and predict civil conflict, the authors lay out the data set, important variables, and investigative strategy of their methodology. The authors then investigate institutional causes, economic causes, and sociological causes for civil conflict, and how that feeds into their model. The methodology provides an identifiable pathway for specifying causal models. This book will be of interest to scholars in the areas of economics, political science, sociology, and artificial intelligence who want to learn more about leveraging machine learning technologies to solve problems and who are invested in preventing civil conflict.

This is the first book to provide a systematic description of statistical properties of large-scale financial data. Specifically, the power-law and log-normal distributions observed at a given time and their changes using time-reversal symmetry, quasi-time-reversal symmetry, Gibrat's law, and the non-Gibrat's property observed in a short-term period are derived here. The statistical properties observed over a long-term period, such as power-law and exponential growth, are also derived. These subjects have not been thoroughly discussed in the field of economics in the past, and this book is a compilation of the author's series of studies by reconstructing the data analyses published in 15 academic journals with new data. This book provides readers with a theoretical and empirical understanding of how the statistical properties observed in firms' large-scale data are related along the time axis. It is possible to expand this discussion to understand theoretically and empirically how the statistical properties observed among differing large-scale financial data are related. This possibility provides readers with an approach to microfoundations, an important issue that has been studied in economics for many years.

This volume analyzes international agreements from a political economy perspective. In four essays, it raises the question of whether domestic institutions help explain if countries join international agreements, and in case they do, what type of international organization they join. The book examines how specific democratic design elements channel and mediate domestic demands directed at politicians, and how under certain circumstances entering international agreements helps politicians navigate these demands to their benefit. The volume also distinguishes between different types of international instruments with a varying expected constraining effect upon member states, and empirically tests if this matters for incentives to join. The volume addresses scholars, students, and practitioners interested in a better understanding of how the shape of domestic institutions affects politicians' incentives to enter into binding international agreements.

This is the first book that employs economics to develop and apply an analytical framework for assessing progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The authors explore the historical context for the underlying sustainability concept, develop an economics-based analytical framework for assessing progress towards the SDGs, and discuss the implications for sustainability policy and future research. Economics is concerned with analysing the trade-offs in allocating scarce means to achieve various ends. Thus, economic methods are ideally suited to assessing how progress towards one or more SDGs may come at the expense of achieving other goals. Such interactions are inevitable in meeting the 2030 Agenda over the next decade, given that the SDGs include different economic, social, and environmental elements. Although it may be possible to make progress across all 17 goals by 2030, it is more likely that improvement toward all goals will be mixed. For example, we may have reduced poverty or hunger over recent years, but the way in which this progress has been achieved - e.g. through economic expansion and industrial growth - may have come at the cost in achieving some environmental or social goals. On the other hand, progress in reducing poverty is likely to go hand-in-hand with other important goals, such as eliminating hunger, improving clean water and sanitation, and ensuring good health and well-being. Assessing these interactions is essential for guiding policy, so that countries and the international community can begin implementing the right set of environmental, social and economic policies to achieve more sustainable and inclusive global development.

Economics Nobel laureates are the pioneers of the science of economics. They are the most brilliant products of the discipline and have made enormous original contributions to the field of economics, and oftentimes history, political science, business, and other subjects. Their works, struggles, successes and failures are fascinating, and readers are given a glimpse into each laureate's life, where and when they were born and raised, what schools they attended, and who influenced their intellectual development. Most importantly, each laureate's often complex corpus of work is described as succinctly as possible without losing the work's original flavor: what it contributed to the field, and how it was received by peers, and how it affected the world. A list of selected further readings concludes each entry, directing the reader to the primary and secondary works essential to understanding the works of these towering figures.

Arranged chronologically by year of award, all 44 entries cogently explain the laureate's life's work in language even non-economists can follow. Economists interested in the intellectual history of their discipline, and professors and students of business will find Wahid's book a very useful resource when seeking out the basic outlines of the thoughts of the scholars who have shaped the fields of economic inquiry, practice, and research. Also, any student in the social sciences thumbing through this book will instantly recognize many currents of thought that have influenced the way scholars in their discipline approach their craft.

This innovative book employs the social studies of finance approach, which aims to enhance the dialogue between finance and sociology by addressing the blind spots of economic and financial theories. In so doing, it challenges the accusations made towards financial models in the aftermath of the last economic crisis and argues that they cannot be condemned indiscriminately. Their influence on markets and society is not straightforward, but determined by the many ways in which models are created and then used. Ekaterina Svetlova analyses the various patterns of the application of models in asset management, risk management and financial engineering to demonstrate that their power is far more fragile than widespread criticism would indicate.This unique and stimulating book furthers our understanding of the influence of financial models on markets and society more broadly. It will be of value to academics in the social studies of finance, economic sociology, philosophy of economics and political economy. It will also useful to practitioners who design and apply models within financial markets, regulators and policy-makers involved in the stability of financial markets, as well as any readers with a general interest in these areas.

This book studies China's international relations, development strategies and development path. It provides an objective and in-depth analysis of areas including international relations in the context of China's population and resource environment, ways to strengthen China's external competitiveness, strategies for economic security and China's trade currency, Sino-US relations in the 21st Century, geopolitical strategy and great renaissance of Chinese culture. The book analyzes the difficulties, challenges and unique features of China's economic and social development. Further, it examines long-term and short-term social and economic issues as well as the difficulties in dealing with the issues. It provides objective and realistic suggestions for realizing China's dream of the great rejuvenation of the nation. It is a valuable source of reference for researchers and practitioners interested in China's development.

This book presents an integrated jurisprudential critique of neoclassical microeconomic theory. It explains what is 'really wrong' with the theory both descriptively, as well as normatively. The criticism presented is based on questions of jurisprudence, and on neoclassical theory's sins of omission and commission concerning the underlying system of property and contract. On the positive side - while the presentation is almost entirely non-mathematical - the book contains the first mathematical treatment of the fundamental theorem about property and contract in jurisprudence that underlies a market economy. The book follows the tradition of John Stuart Mill as the last major political economist who considered the study of property rights as an integral part of economic theory. The conceptual criticisms presented in this book focus on the descriptive and normative misconceptions about property and contracts that are deeply embedded ideology in neoclassical economics, not to mention in the broader society. The book recognizes that the idealized microeconomic theory is not descriptive of reality and focuses its criticism on conceptual mistakes in the theory, which are even clearer due to the idealized nature of the theory. Therefore, the book is a must-read for scholars, researchers, and students interested in a better understanding of jurisprudence in economics, neoclassical microeconomic theory, and political economy in general.

The book presents a new theoretical approach to the description of economic phenomena over time. A realistic and meaningful description of economic phenomena over time is one of the basic preconditions for the success of any economic theory. The presented theoretical solution or proposal has two main characteristics. The first is a modification of the theory of subjective value in the form of the claim that one perceives the satisfaction of one's needs in the context of one's overall individual portfolio of goods. The causal relationship of the "old" theory in the form of "need is satisfied by good" is modified in terms of "sum of needs is satisfied by portfolio of goods (sum of goods)". This is a small modification, which, however, brings several important elements to the description of economic phenomena over time. The old theoretical approach did not enable us to operate over time because of different value context of goods which is changing over time. However, the portfolio of goods is, in fact, a formally-logical homogeneous construction of the mind, which is applicable over time. The second characteristic is the anchoring of this modification of the theory of subjective value in evolutionary (intersubjective) apriorism. The book will be of interest to any Austrian and Mainstream Economists who deal with problems of description of economic phenomena in time. Also, for those involved in topics such as estimating of future, why entrepreneurs are successful or the problem of social ordering or equilibration and those who are interested in the new evolutionary approach to the emergence of criteria for rational decision-making.

This volume is concerned with the different schools within the discipline of economics (theoretical pluralism) and the relationship of economics to other disciplines, such as sociology, political science and philosophy (interdisciplinarity). It addresses the important implications of pluralism and interdisciplinarity for teaching economics at both undergraduate and graduate level and argues that the economics curriculum should pay equal attention to these new perspectives rather than concentrate on the traditional neoclassical mainstream. The distinguished contributors highlight the inherent challenges of presenting a combination of mainstream economics with more heterodox approaches in such a way that the student is not confused, but better understands the possibilities and limitations of different schools in economics. They go on to demonstrate how to apply these different approaches and show how a more inter-disciplinary approach can be followed once the boundaries of the economics discipline have been reached. The volume attempts to offer insights into the content of such a revised curriculum and the process of how to achieve this. This book will be required reading for every serious teacher and student of economics. It will also be invaluable to anyone who questions the validity of current economic orthodoxy.

Elgar Research Agendas outline the future of research in a given area. Leading scholars are given the space to explore their subject in provocative ways, and map out the potential directions of travel. They are relevant but also visionary. In recent years, an explosive rise in computing power and the digitization of data has allowed researchers in new institutional economics (NIE) to investigate questions that could never before be systematically analysed. This book explores key issues for future research in the field, analysing both traditional areas of focus in NIE and more recent areas of interest. Consisting of 30 concise chapters written by top NIE scholars, this Research Agenda probes issues at the forefront of NIE, including government, contracts, property rights, norms, culture, and beliefs. Analysing rapid changes in technology and the environment, such as the rise of social media and the effects of climate change in agriculture, this book offers unique insights into key contemporary issues. Written in non-technical terms, this book will inform and inspire students and those starting their careers in economics, law and political science. NIE scholars will also find the book invaluable in updating their understanding of crucial research questions and seeking new areas to explore. Contributors: J.S. Ahlquist, J.E. Aldy, D.W. Allen, J. Bednar, J.C. Cardenas, P. Castaneda Dower, R. Fernandez, S. Gehlbach, R. Gil, M.A. Golden, C. Guerriero, S. Iyer, P. Keefer, K. Kosec, R. Kunneke, C. Long, R. Macchiavello, K.J. Mayer, C. Menard, T. Mogues, M.W. Moszoro, B. Mueller, S. Oh, D. Parker, J. Prufer, P. Prufer, M. Servatka, M.M. Shirley, E. Simison, F. Sobbrio, J. Teorell, T. Terpstra, M. Vatiero, S. Voigt, S. Wallsten, G. Zanarone, D. Ziblatt