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Econ 541 - Winter Quarter

Syllabus

The foundations of economics lie in the economic decisions made by individuals and by families—decisions regarding the allocation of their principal resource, time, among alternative uses and decisions about how to spend a limited budget on desired goods and services. The focus of this course will be on theoretical modeling and empirical investigation of how individuals sort into families (marriage and divorce, coresidence) and of the key economic outcomes determined in a family context (time allocation, fertility and investments in children, care of the elderly). Of particular interest are the interactions between family decisions and labor market outcomes. Throughout, we will emphasize methods of confronting theory with data, of devising simple and effective tests for hypotheses.

The requirements for this course consist of 2 in-class presentations of research papers, to be chosen from the reading list and approved by me, 2 written critiques, and a research paper proposal. The presentations should be 20-30 minutes long, and should consist of a summary of the procedures and results, and an analysis of the paper and its significance. I have indicated papers that you might wish to consider presenting with an asterisk (*) on the reading list—if you have another paper in mind, please check with me. The critiques should be 3-5 pages, and should include a summary of the paper and the main results, a discussion of how this piece of research fits into and contributes to the literature, a critique of the methods and/or approach (which need not be negative, but should be analytical), and suggestions for further research. I expect that you will choose the papers from the reading list, and will avoid survey papers, but if you have another paper you would like to write about, let me know. The purpose of this assignment is to develop your ability to read closely and analyze critically recent research, and also to develop a sense of how good research builds on existing knowledge and points to future breakthroughs. More details about the assignments and due dates will be announced soon.

After you have chosen the papers you will present in class, I will produce a revised, shorter reading list that includes only material that will be covered in class.