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2023-2024 Academic Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]
Economics Courses
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Economics
Economics
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ECN 111 - Introduction to Economics 4 credits (Fall and Spring)
A survey of the basic concepts and methods of analysis used in economics. Application to such policy problems as economic recession, inflation, regulation of industry, poverty and income distribution, financial crises, pollution, and trade restrictions.
Prerequisite: None.
Instructor: Staff -
ECN 205 - Current State of the U.S. Economy 4 credits
A study of current business conditions and key public policy problems in the United States. Analysis of the data reporting system and judgmental forecasting. Recent problems have included: inflation, the federal deficit, government regulation, energy, unemployment, and tax reform. Not intended for students who have taken ECN 280 or ECN 282 .
Prerequisite: ECN 111 with grade S, C, or better.
Note: Plus-2 option available.
Instructor: Staff -
ECN 215 - Labor Economics 4 credits
An investigation into the political economy of labor markets. Consideration given to traditional supply and demand interactions, relations of authority between employers and employees and their influence on productivity, internal labor markets, labor market segmentation, the role of unions, racial differences, gender differences, and the effects of international competition on U.S. labor markets. Not intended for students who have taken ECN 280 or ECN 282 .
Prerequisite: ECN 111 with grade S, C, or better.
Note: Plus-2 option available. Not offered every year.
Instructor: Ferguson, Lee -
ECN 220 - Foundations of Policy Analysis 4 credits (Spring)
Cross-listed as: PST 220 . This course explores principles of policy making, with applications. It opens by examining theoretical rationales for policy, including those premised on ideology or market failure. It proceeds to investigate institutional context and processes relevant to policy making, using case studies. With this foundation, the course explores specific policy problems and solutions related to important problem areas such as economic growth, health care, monetary policy, education, and environment. Students will be encouraged to investigate policy areas of interest for case studies and papers. Not intended for students who have taken ECN 280 or ECN 282 .
Prerequisite: ECN 111 with grade S, C, or better, and second-year standing.
Instructor: Ferguson -
ECN 226 - Economics of Innovation 4 credits (Fall or Spring)
An examination of the role of innovation in the economy. Topics include the process of innovation, drivers of innovation, intellectual property, the impact of innovation on firms, labor, economic growth, and inequality, and innovation policy. Not intended for students who have taken ECN 280 or ECN 282 .
Prerequisite: ECN 111 with grade S, C, or better.
Note: Plus-2 option available.
Instructor: B. Graham -
ECN 228 - Introduction to Managerial Economics 4 credits (Fall or Spring)
Managerial Economics presents a microeconomic approach to business decisions. The concepts and problems are analyzed from the perspective of the firm and the managers’ decisions. Emphasis is thus placed on the study of the production process and the analysis of interactions in markets, both with the customers and the rival firms. Topics include: managing in competitive, monopolistic, and oligopolistic markets; strategic interactions and game theory; pricing; information and market structure; and regulation and public policy.
Prerequisite: ECN 111 with grade S, C, or better.
Instructor: Montgomery -
ECN 230 - Economic Development 4 credits
A survey of analytic approaches to the process of economic development in Asia, Africa, and Latin America, and an examination of their significant policy problems. Not intended for students who have taken ECN 280 or ECN 282 .
Prerequisite: ECN 111 with grade S, C, or better.
Note: Plus-2 option available.
Instructor: McGavock -
ECN 233 - International Economics 4 credits
An introduction to international trade theory, balance of payments concepts, and exchange rate determination. Topics include events, international institutions, and policies that affect trade, foreign investment, economic stability, and growth. Not intended for students who have taken ECN 280 or ECN 282 .
Prerequisite: ECN 111 with grade S, C, or better.
Note: Plus-2 option available.
Instructor: Utar -
ECN 235 - Money and Banking 4 credits (Fall or Spring)
An examination of the role of money, banking, and financial institutions in the economy. Topics include interest rate determination, money creation in the banking system, the role of Central Banks and monetary policy. Case studies on banking and financial crisis and policy responses will also be analyzed.
Prerequisite: ECN 111 with grade S, C, or better.
Instructor: Staff -
ECN 236 - Health Economics 4 credits (Fall or Spring)
An introduction to health economics using basic economic theory to understand the implications of health-related markets and policies in the United States and abroad. This course will cover topics including health insurance, behavioral responses to health-related incentives, and determinants of access to health care services.
Prerequisite: ECN 111 with grade S, C, or better.
Instructor: Kelly -
ECN 238 - Economic History 4 credits (Fall and Spring)
Economic history seeks to understand complex economic systems of the past and how they have changed over time. This course provides an introduction to the field, focusing on major transformations in economic organization, economic growth, standards of living, demographics, and technology in history. Topics may include the British industrial revolution, the great divergence, financial crises such as the global Great Depression, and the role of institutions. Not intended for students who have taken ECN 280 or ECN 282 .
Prerequisite: ECN 111 with grade S, C, or better.
Instructor: Parker -
ECN 240 - Resource and Environmental Economics 4 credits
Investigation of the economics of renewable and nonrenewable natural resources. Particular emphasis on the relationship between the biological and physical characteristics of particular resources and our economic choices. Consideration of selected current problems. Not intended for students who have taken ECN 280 or ECN 282 .
Prerequisite: ECN 111 with grade S, C, or better.
Note: Plus-2 option available.
Instructor: Brouhle -
ECN 245 - Financial Economics 4 credits
This course examines the financial system’s role in the domestic and global economy. It surveys financial markets (e.g. common stock markets), players (e.g. investment companies), and instruments (e.g. options and futures contracts) with a focus on the underlying economic and regulatory forces that shape the financial system and its impact on the broader economy. Not intended for students who have previously taken ECN 280 or ECN 282 .
Prerequisite: ECN 111 with grade S, C, or better.
Note: Plus-2 option available. Not offered every year.
Instructor: Staff -
ECN 250 - Public Economics 4 credits
The economic role of government in an economy. Topics include the determination of the size and economic function of government, expenditure decisions and budgeting, the incidence and distributional effects of various taxes, and issues in state and local finance. Not intended for students who have taken ECN 280 or ECN 282 .
Prerequisite: ECN 111 with grade S, C, or better.
Note: Not offered every year.
Instructor: Brouhle, Ohrn -
ECN 280 - Microeconomic Analysis 4 credits (Fall and Spring)
An examination of the theoretical underpinnings of the economic system. The objective is to develop a theoretical framework with which to investigate the economic behavior of individual consumers, firms, and resource owners.
Prerequisite: MAT 124 or MAT 131 , and one additional economics course numbered between 205 and 250; with grades S, C, or better, and second year standing.
Instructor: Brouhle, McGavock -
ECN 282 - Macroeconomic Analysis 4 credits (Fall and Spring)
Analysis of economic aggregates, primarily national income and employment, through a theoretical framework. While current and historical real world examples will be used to illustrate concepts, the primary goal is the development of general tools that enable students to understand the behavior of a macroeconomy.
Prerequisite: ECN 280 with grade S, C, or better.
Instructor: Staff -
ECN 286 - Econometrics 4 credits (Fall and Spring)
The use of statistical techniques to estimate and test economic models. Topics include multiple regression, multicollinearity, serial correlation, heteroskedasticity, simultaneous equations, limited dependent variables, and time series/forecasting.
Prerequisite: ECN 111 , and STA 209 , STA 309 , STA 310 , MAT 335 , or STA 335 ; with grade S, C, or better, and second-year standing. ECN 280 or ECN 282 ; with grade S, C, or better. recommended.
Instructor: Lee, Montgomery, Parker -
ECN 326 - Financial and Managerial Accounting 4 credits (Fall)
A case-based introduction to the principles of financial and managerial accounting. Although this is a first course in accounting, the level of coverage is advanced. Students work in teams and are responsible for their own learning and the learning of their colleagues. Open only to third-year students and seniors.
Prerequisite: ECN 280 with grade S, C, or better.
Instructor: Ohrn -
ECN 327 - Corporate Finance 4 credits (Spring)
An intense examination of the basics of theory and practice in corporate financial management. An understanding of intermediate microeconomics and financial accounting and comfort with applied mathematics are essential for success in this course.
Prerequisite: ECN 280 with grade S, C, or better.
Instructor: Ohrn -
ECN 329 - Advanced Econometrics 4 credits (Fall)
This course expands upon the econometrics background provided by ECN 286, exploring the underlying properties of the estimators and learning to program their calculation in STATA. We will use matrix algebra to derive and explore the properties of ordinary least squares, restricted least squares, generalized least squares, instrumental variables, and panel estimation. We will also learn to program STATA to calculate these estimators.
Prerequisite: ECN 286 with grade S, C, or better.
Instructor: Montgomery -
ECN 336 - Behavioral and Experimental Economics 4 credits (Fall or Spring)
In this course we will explore the ways in which individuals make decisions with a particular focus on deviations from the predictions of classical rational actor theory. This course will also give students firsthand experience designing economic experiments.
Prerequisite: ECN 280 with grade S, C, or better.
Note: Plus-2 option available.
Instructor: L. Lee -
ECN 338 - Applied Game Theory 4 credits (Fall and Spring)
Game theory facilitates modeling strategic interaction among interdependent agents who share awareness of their interdependence. As such, it can generate analytical foundations for many relationships found in social and natural sciences. This course develops game theoretic modeling using visual representation and equations, with an emphasis on intuitive technique and direct application to examples primarily from economics and politics.
Prerequisite: ECN 280 , and MAT 124 or MAT 131 ; with grades S, C, or better..
Instructor: Ferguson, Staff -
ECN 339 - Introduction to Mathematical Economics 4 credits
An introduction to mathematical models of economic behavior. Basic techniques in differential and integral calculus and linear algebra will be applied to a wide range of micro- and macroeconomic issues. Topics include comparative statics, optimization, and linear programming.
Prerequisite: MAT 133 , and ECN 280 and ECN 282 ; with grades S, C, or better. MAT 215 is useful but not required.
Note: Not offered every year.
Instructor: Staff -
ECN 366 - Seminar in Health Economics 4 credits
This seminar familiarizes students with topics related to healthcare and health disparities. Topics chosen from historical foundations of and legal landscapes around healthcare, demographic factors in healthcare such as aging, and behavioral and public health concerns. Students will be expected to learn much of the literature within this field as well as the econometric tools used to answer applied microeconomices questions within health.
Prerequisite: ECN 280 with grade S, C, or better. Prerequisite or co-requisite: ECN 286 , MAT 336 , or STA 336 ; with grade S, C, or better when used as a prerequisite.
Note: Not offered every year.
Instructor: Kelly -
ECN 369 - Seminar in Environmental Economics 4 credits
This course will familiarize students with the theory and application of economics to environmental problems and prepare them to analyze issues in environmental economics and policy. It will focus on the design of cost-effective environmental policies and on methods for determining the value of environmental amenities.
Prerequisite: ECN 280 with grade S, C, or better. Prerequisite or co-requisite: ECN 286 , MAT 336 , or STA 336 ; with grade S, C, or better when used as prerequisite.
Instructor: Brouhle -
ECN 370 - Seminar in Political Economy 4 credits
This course begins with the premise that many economic interactions are “political” in the sense that coalitions of participants, whose interests may differ, can influence important outcomes. The course will explore tendencies toward competition, cooperation, and conflict, and their relationship to constraints imposed by the forces of supply and demand, as they operate in various institutional arenas, such as labor markets or the national economy. The course will examine relevant theories of incomplete contracting under conditions of imperfect information with some attention to game theory, and then apply these concepts to contemporary problems concerning employment, economic growth, and the distribution of income and wealth.
Prerequisite: ECN 280 and ECN 282 with grades S, C, or better.. Prerequisite or co-requisite: ECN 286 , MAT 336 , or STA 336 ; with grade S, C, or better when used as a prerequisite.
Instructor: Ferguson -
ECN 372 - Seminar in Economic Development 4 credits
Processes of growth and change in developing societies. Both theoretical and empirical modes of analysis introduced in the literature covered. Topics chosen from among population growth, agricultural development, industrialization, investment in human capital vs. physical capital, the balanced-unbalanced growth controversy, noneconomic factors in development and underdevelopment.
Prerequisite: ECN 280 with grade S, C, or better. Prerequisite or co-requisite: ECN 286 , MAT 336 , or STA 336 ; with grade S, C, or better when used as a prerequisite.
Note: Not offered every year.
Instructor: McGavock -
ECN 374 - Seminar in International Trade 4 credits
International trade theory and policy. Explanations of the pattern of trade, gains from trade, effects on income distribution, labor markets, industries and trends over time. Topics include operations of multinational corporations, offshoring, migration, trade negotiations and agreements, effects of trade policies and other current topics.
Prerequisite: ECN 280 with grade S, C, or better. Prerequisite or co-requisite: ECN 286 , MAT 336 , or STA 336 ; with grade S, C, or better when used as a prerequisite.
Note: Not offered every year.
Instructor: Utar -
ECN 375 - Seminar in Corporate Taxation 4 credits (Fall and Spring)
In this course, students will learn about the effects of corporate taxation. To accomplish this goal, students will (1) use simple theoretical models to predict how economic actors will respond to corporate taxes, (2) learn how to use and evaluate the use of modern empirical techniques, (3) read and discuss contemporary economics journal articles, and (4) develop and explore a research question in the area of corporate taxation using modern empirical techniques.
Prerequisite: ECN 280 and ECN 286 , with grades S, C, or better.
Instructor: Ohrn -
ECN 376 - Seminar in Income Distribution 4 credits
Examination of the distribution of income and wealth in the United States, covering conflicting explanations of economic inequality and policy debates. Topics include economic trends affecting U.S. workers, racial and sexual inequality, and poverty.
Prerequisite: ECN 280 and ECN 282 with grades S, C, or better. Prerequisite or co-requisite: ECN 286 , MAT 336 , or STA 336 ; with grade S, C, or better when used as a prerequisite.
Instructor: Staff -
ECN 378 - Seminar in Law and Economics 4 credits
This course considers the application of economic theory to the law and legal institutions, including property, contract, tort, and criminal law. We will investigate how legal rules influence economic incentives and the allocation of resources. Topics include liability and negligence assignment, uncertainty, allocation of property rights, bargaining, remedies, criminal deterrence, and the litigation process.
Prerequisite: ECN 280 with grade S, C, or better. Prerequisite or co-requisite: ECN 286 , MAT 336 , or STA 336 ; with grade S, C, or better when used as a prerequisite.
Instructor: Graham -
ECN 379 - Seminar in the Economics of Crime 4 credits (Fall or Spring)
This course is designed to increase student’s understanding of the determinants and consequences of criminality. We will explore all levels of crime and punishment from societies optimally choosing deterrence mechanisms to prisoners making behavioral decisions while incarcerated. Students should expect to learn a large portion of the literature regarding these issues as well as the econometric tools used in applied micro economics research.
Prerequisite: ECN 280 and ECN 286 , MAT 336 , or STA 336 ; with grades S, C, or better..
Instructor: Lee -
ECN 380 - Seminar in Monetary Economics 4 credits
Analysis of how monetary and financial institutions affect the growth and stability of economies internationally. Examination of theoretical controversies and evidence about relations between money and the real sectors of economies, interactions between central banks, international monetary authorities, and currency flows, and financial aspects of the inflation process and economic stability. Study of the effects of current changes in financial intermediaries and structures.
Prerequisite: ECN 282 with grade S, C, or better. Prerequisite or co-requisite: ECN 286 , MAT 336 , or STA 336 ; with grade S, C, or better when used as a prerequisite.
Instructor: Staff -
ECN 384 - Seminar in the Economics of Education 4 credits
Education becomes increasingly important as the “information economy” replaces the old industrial economy. This course explores some questions that are global, others that are personal: is better education the solution to poverty? Is investment in human capital the key to a nation’s development? Can vouchers improve public schools? Is a Grinnell education a better investment than putting those thousands of tuition dollars into the stock market? Should you go to law school?
Prerequisite: ECN 280 and ECN 282 with grades S, C, or better. Prerequisite or co-requisite: ECN 286 , MAT 336 , or STA 336 ; with grade S, C, or better when used as a prerequisite.
Note: Not offered every year.
Instructor: Staff -
ECN 388 - Seminar in Global Factor Movements 4 credits (Fall or Spring)
This course focuses on the movements of factors of production across countries, particularly labor migration and capital movements. We will cover theoretical frameworks, trends, and discuss empirical evidence related of the determinants and consequences of these flows in the origin and destination countries.
Prerequisite: ECN 280 , ECN 282 , and ECN 286 , MAT 336 , or STA 336 ; with grades S, C, or better..
Instructor: Staff
Special Topics-Fall
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ECN 295-01 - Special Topics: Behavioral Economics 4 credits (Fall)
This course provides an introduction to behavioral economics. In it, students will explore how and why individuals and firms make decisions that diverge from expected or “rational” behavior. To do so, students will incorporate psychological insights into economic models, study how heuristics and biases shape human decisions, and work to understand how nudges might overcome these biases in some settings.
Prerequisite: ECN 111 with grade S, C, or better.
Instructor: Nandy -
ECN 395-01 - Advanced Special Topic: Seminar in Economic History 4 credits (Fall)
Economic history of work, workers, households, and inequality. We will take an interdisciplinary approach to aspects of historical labor markets. Topics may include unemployment, human capital, migration, demographic and regional inequality, and labor market institutions, focusing on historical episodes in Western Europe and the United States from the early modern period through the late twentieth century. Students will develop and explore a research question on a related topic in economic history.
Prerequisite: ECN 280 and ECN 286 .
Instructor: Paker -
ECN 395-02 - Advanced Special Topic: Time Series Econometrics 4 credits (Fall and Spring)
Empirical research in macroeconomics and international finance often relies on a series of econometric tools designed to analyze time-series data. This course will provide students with an introduction to these tools. The course will cover autoregressive (AR) models, distributed lag (DL) models, and autoregressive distributed lag (ADL) models. Additional topics may include unit roots, cointegration tests, and vector autoregressions. The course will likely include a research component.
Prerequisite: ECN 282 and ECN 286 with grades of S, C, or better.
Instructor: Nie
Special Topics-Spring
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ECN 395-01 - Advanced Special Topic: Time Series Econometrics 4 credits (Spring)
Empirical research in macroeconomics and international finance often relies on a series of econometric tools designed to analyze time-series data. This course will provide students with an introduction to these tools. The course will cover autoregressive (AR) models, distributed lag (DL) models, and autoregressive distributed lag (ADL) models. Additional topics may include unit roots, cointegration tests, and vector autoregressions. The course will likely include a research component.
Prerequisite: ECN 282 and ECN 286 with grades S, C, or better.
Instructor: Nandy -
PSY 395-02 - Advanced Special Topic: Questions and Methods of Cognitive Neuroscience 4 credits (Spring)
The course explores the key methods used in cognitive neuroscience, such as EEG/ERP, fMRI, and TMS, as well as what they can tell us about memory, attention, language comprehension, and cognition in general. Students will also get hands on experience with EEG data collection, ERP analysis, and data interpretation as part of the course.
Prerequisite: PSY 225 and two other 200-level Psychology or Neuroscience courses, with grades S, C, or better.
Instructor: Papaioannou
Variable Topics- Spring
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ECN 295-01 - Special Topic: Behavioral Economics 4 credits (Spring)
This course provides an introduction to behavioral economics. In it, students will explore how and why individuals and firms make decisions that diverge from expected or “rational” behavior. To do so, students will incorporate psychological insights into economic models, study how heuristics and biases shape human decisions, and work to
understand how nudges might overcome these biases in some settings.
Prerequisite: ECN 111 with grade S, C, or better.
Instructor: Nandy
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