Preface to the first edition
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 June 2012
Summary
The conception of this book began in the autumn semester of 1990 when I undertook a course in Advanced Economic Theory for undergraduates at the University of Stirling. In this course we attempted to introduce students to dynamics and some of the more recent advances in economic theory. In looking at this material it was quite clear that phase diagrams, and what mathematicians would call qualitative differential equations, were becoming widespread in the economics literature. There is little doubt that in large part this was a result of the rational expectations revolution going on in economics. With a more explicit introduction of expectations into economic modelling, adjustment processes became the mainstay of many economic models. As such, there was a movement away from models just depicting comparative statics. The result was a more explicit statement of a model's dynamics, along with its comparative statics. A model's dynamics were explicitly spelled out, and in particular, vectors of forces indicating movements when the system was not in equilibrium. This led the way to solving dynamic systems by employing the theory of differential equations. Saddle paths soon entered many papers in economic theory. However, students found this material hard to follow, and it did not often use the type of mathematics they were taught in their quantitative courses. Furthermore, the material that was available was very scattered indeed.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Economic DynamicsPhase Diagrams and their Economic Application, pp. xiii - xivPublisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2002