Customer Reviews

Macroeconomic Theory: A Dynamic General Equilibrium Approach

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This text is unique. It is the only text that provides a DGE approach to macroeconomics (which is the only really correct approach), while at the same time covering legacy theories (such as Keynesian IS-LM) and distinguishing between the two. This way the reader can understand the deficiencies in the legacy theories, which are still often used in undergraduate econ courses.

The text's treatment of government finances and fiscal policy is excellent. I have a lot of econ textbooks to compare with this text, and clearly this text has the clearest exposition.

The text's treatment of the open economy and nominal exchange rates is also quite good. Here again the contrast between the current models (IS-LM-BP, Mundell-Fleming) and DGE models is carried out well.

The treatment of money is very good as well. The treatment covers the cash-in-advance and shopping time models and shows how they come close to the Keynesian money demand function.

Finally, I like the level of mathematics used in the text. I like log-linear models, because they cut to the heart of the issue. Many of the models presented are converted over to log-linear, which aids in the intuition to be gained from the model.

I hope that Prof. Wickens receives compliments on his book, because I want him to continue to update the text.

As one of the other reviews note, this book often skips several steps in calculations. And its results are often just plain wrong. The economic interpretation of the equations (that is, the stuff we are actually doing the math for!) is poor or at best not very well explained.

Our professor is clearly uncomfortable teaching form this textbook citing the many errors and apologising for the lack of a logical notation(the book adds the subscript "t+s" rather than the standard "+s"), it is just an example of the many things which add to one being annoyed when reading the book or following courses using this book.

The parts on growth theory cover some very interesting models but nothing in the book seems to be at a very high level, which i suppose can be good or bad as it can mean the book explains it really well or that you arent learning what you need to. I think it is the second.

This book by Michael Wickens provides a comprehensive coverage of modern macroeconomics at a Master's Level. It covers key topics including: fiscal policy, monetary policy, open economy macroeconomics, public finance and asset pricing. Content on asset pricing and financial markets is invaluable for applied economists who have to grapple with policy issues and the interaction of the financial sector with the 'real economy'. Furthermore, the mathematical appendix and the list of problems and solutions provides excellent support material which helps ensure that the content has been well understood.

This is perhaps the worst textbook I have ever encountered in my studies. While the book does follow a logical structure and covers the subject well, the explanation of the material is severely lacking. Unexplained mathematical steps, sparse intuitive explanations, and not to mention a considerable amount of errors make this textbook difficult and frustrating to read.