Explorations in Pragmatic Economics

For twenty years since the publication of his seminal paper ‘The market for “Lemons”, George A. Akerlof’s work has changed the way economics is seen and understood, in particular, the economics of information. In abandoning the perfect-competition benchmarks of classical economics, the pragmatic modern economics championed by Akerlof has provided deep insights into markets, identity, discrimination, motivation and work, and into behavioural economics in general. This collection of Akerlof’s significant papers coauthored with eminent economists is divided into two broad areas, micro-and macroeconomics. They cover: the economics of information, the theory of unemployment, macroeconomic equilibria, the demand for money, economics and psychology, the nature of discrimination and other social issues. The collection closes with akerlof’s 2001 Nobel Lecture, in which he argues that it is imperative macroeconomics be considered inherently behavioural. The author’s substantial introduction to this volume tells the story of these papers, connecting them and showing how his later work has built upon early contributions. In many cases he improves upon their arguments, their subtlety, and their usefulness today. This volume will interest students of economics, researchers, and academics in the field.