Economic Policy & Public Choice

Lecture with Tutorial in WS 2011/2012

Prof. Dr. Bernhard Neumärker

Lecture

Main Tutorials (Mandatory)

 
Stephan Wolf, Cvetelina Todorova

Sub-Tutorials (Additional)

Martha Kontodaimon

NBS:  Mondays, 10:15-11:45, HS 1036

General: Mondays, 16:15-17:45, HS 3117

Start

Lecture: First Week of Semester
Tutorial: Second Week of Semester
Sub-Tutorials: Third Week of Semester

Target Group

Integrated Master Program First-year Course (Lecture and Tutorial)

Hauptstudium, Anerkennung unter "Wirtschaftspolitik: Ordnungspolitik", "Ordnungs- und Wettbewerbspolitik", "Sozialpolitik"

Credits

6 Credit Points.

Support

Stephan Wolf, Room 2436
Tel.: 203-2318
e-mail: stephan.wolf@vwl.uni-freiburg.de
Office hours: on appointment

Current Information

t.b.a.

Downloads for Lecture

• Syllabus
• Slides Parts I-IV

Downloads for Tutorial

• Syllabus
• Session 1
• Session 2 (corrected slide: p. 13)
• Session 3
• Session 4 (corrected slides: pp. 35-37, 44)
• Session 5
• Session 6 (corrected slide: p. 23)
• Session 7 (corrected slide: p. 8)
• Session 8
• Session 9 (corrected slide: p. 35)
• Session 10
• Session 11
• Session 12
• Exam Preparation
• Evaluation Results

Downloads for Sub-Tutorial

• Question Set 1
• Question Set 2
• Question Set 3
• Question Set 4
• Question Set 5
• Question Set 6
• Question Set 7
• Question Set 8

Outline

1. Introduction
2. Economic problems of economic policy
   1. Economic man and collective action
   2. Allocation and exchange
   3. Distribution and conflict
   4. Liberty and welfare
   5. Implementation and reform
   6. Stability and sustainability
3. The public choice of economic policy
   1. Rational and behavioral public choice
   2. Positive and normative public choice
4. Institutions and hierarchies of public choice
   1. Authoritarian policy formation
      1.1 Leviathan governments
      1.2 Autocratic regimes
   2. Democratic organization and voting rules
      2.1 Rational voting and basic voting systems
      2.2 Direct and representative democracy
      2.3 Legislature
      2.4 Bureaucracy
      2.5 Interest groups, rent-seeking and lobbying
   3. Spatial hierarchy
      3.1 Federalism
      3.2 Supranational policy choice
5. Liberal concepts of economic policy formation
   1. Ordoliberal design
   2. Liberal paternalism
   3. Constitutional political economy
6. Application to special policy issues
   1. Redistribution in democracy
   2. Organizing the just welfare state
   3. Market regulation and privatization
   4. Constitutional budget constraints and their effects on economic policy

 
References:

• Hillman, A.L.: Public Finance and Public Policy, 2^nd Ed., Cambridge 2009.
  
• Mueller, D.C.: Public Choice III, Cambridge 2003.