Ms Johanna Thoma LAK 4.02

Dr Campbell Brown

This course is available on the MRes in Economics (Track 1), MRes/PhD in Economics, MSc in Economics and Philosophy, MSc in European Studies: Ideas, Ideologies and Identities, MSc in Philosophy and Public Policy, MSc in Philosophy of Science, MSc in Philosophy of the Social Sciences and MSc in Social Research Methods. This course is available as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit.

Students must have completed Economics A (EC100).

This course provides a philosophical discussion of the methods and normative commitments of contemporary economics.

The first term will focus on economic methodology and the foundations of utility theory, with an eye to important current debates in economics. We will discuss questions such as: What is utility, and how do economists measure it? Does evidence of widespread `irrationality’ from behavioural economics undermine standard microeconomic theory? Can idealised models teach us anything about real-world phenomena? If yes, how? How should we measure important economic variables, such as poverty? How do we best find out what interventions work in development? Does macroeconomics need microfoundations? Is the economics profession to blame for its failure to predict the financial crisis?

The second term will focus on welfare economics, and the ethical assumptions and implications of economics. We will cover questions such as: Is getting what you want always good for you? Can you be harmed by something if you never know about it? Does it make sense to say that eating pizza gives me more happiness than going to the movies gives you? Is it possible to combine the preferences of individuals into an overall 'social' preference? Does it matter if the well-being of some people is less than that of others? What are the moral limits of markets? How should we resolve collective action problems? What is a fair distribution of the benefits from cooperation? Should there be barriers to international trade?

15 hours of lectures and 15 hours of seminars in the MT. 15 hours of lectures and 15 hours of seminars in the LT.

Students will be expected to produce 2 essays in the MT and 1 essay and 1 presentation in the LT.

D. Hausman, The Philosophy of Economics: An Anthology; J. L. Bermudez, Decision Theory and Rationality; J. Cohen and W. Easterly, What Works in Development: Thinking Big and Thinking Small; H. Davies, The Financial Crisis - Who is to Blame? D. Hausman and M. McPherson, Economic Analysis, Moral Philosophy, and Public Policy; D. Gauthier, Morals by Agreement; D. Satz, Why Some Things Should Not Be for Sale.

Additional readings will be made available on Moodle.

Exam (65%, duration: 2 hours) in the main exam period.
Essay (25%, 2000 words) in the ST.
Presentation (10%) in the LT.