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2022/2023

Political Economy

Code: 101077 ECTS Credits: 12
Degree Type Year Semester
2500259 Political Science and Public Management FB 1 A
2500262 Sociology FB 1 A
2503778 International Relations FB 1 A

Contact

Name:
Miquel Ŕngel Garcia Lopez
Email:
miquelangel.garcia@uab.cat

Use of Languages

Principal working language:
catalan (cat)
Some groups entirely in English:
No
Some groups entirely in Catalan:
Yes
Some groups entirely in Spanish:
Yes

Teachers

Francesc Xavier López Andrés
Paula Veciana Botet
Jordi Mundet Pons
Rocio Baeza Fernandez
Antoni Buira Guillamet
Miquel Ŕngel Garcia Lopez
Francisco Navarro Gálvez

Prerequisites

No prior knowledge of Economics is presupposed.

It should be taken into account, however, that Economics, as a field of knowledge, uses numerical, graphical and algebraic languages, in addition to the verbal language, to identify and represent quantitative relationships and and relationships of dependence and causality between variables.

Objectives and Contextualisation

The objective of the subject is to provide the basic tools developed so far by economic science and that allow us to analyze and understand much of the current social reality, as well as persistent economic organization issues in all human societies. Some of the questions that arise are the following:

Since when, and why, there are markets and money, and what is their function? Why and when do firms grow up, or, on the contrary, close up? Where do the profits of business come from? What is productivity, and why is it important? What are they, and how can emission rights markets help the planet's sustainability? What challenges does Climatic Change involve? How can the degree of inequality be measured within a country? What are the causes of inequality and poverty within a society? What are the implications of gender inequalities? What public interventions improve collective well-being, and which ones do not? What interventions reduce inequality and which ones do not? Why are there so big income differences per capita between the different countries of the world? What are economic cycles? What are the causes and consequences of inflation? Why is there unemployment, and why does the number of unemployed vary over time?

Despite the complexity of the addressed questions, the objective is that the student, at the end of the course, has learned to use the basic tools we currently have to begin dealing with these issues rigorously and autonomously, and know how to search for information about the facts, how to analyze them and how to distinguish between analysis, assessment and opinion. This effort must allow the student's informed participation as a citizen in debates on public policies both locally and globally, as well as facilitating the study of other economic subjects throughout the degree.

Competences

    Political Science and Public Management
  • Demonstrating good writing skills in different contexts.
  • Distinguishing the discipline's main theories and different fields: conceptual developments, theoretical frameworks and theoretical approaches underlying the discipline's knowledge and different areas and sub-areas, as well as their value for the professional practice through concrete cases.
  • Interpreting and applying English texts in an academic way.
  • Managing the available time in order to accomplish the established objectives and fulfil the intended task.
  • Realising effective oral presentations that are suited to the audience.
  • Showing a good capacity for transmitting information, distinguishing key messages for their different recipients.
  • Synthesizing and critically analysing information.
  • Working autonomously.
    Sociology
  • Analysing the problems arising from the implementation of public policies and conflict situations by recognising the complexity of the social phenomena and political decisions affecting democracy, human rights, social justice and sustainable development.
  • Applying the concepts and approaches of the sociological theory, specially the explanations of social inequalities between classes, between genders and between ethnic groups, to the implementation of public policies and to the resolution of conflict situations.
  • Describing social phenomena in a theoretically relevant way, bearing in mind the complexity of the involved factors, its causes and its effects.
  • Developing critical thinking and reasoning and communicating them effectively both in your own and other languages.
  • Developing self-learning strategies.
  • Respecting the diversity and plurality of ideas, people and situations.
  • Students must be capable of assessing the quality of their own work.
  • Students must be capable of managing their own time, planning their own study, managing the relationship with their tutor or adviser, as well as setting and meeting deadlines for a work project.
    International Relations
  • Analyse international society and its structure and understand its importance for real-life problems and professional practice.
  • Identify data sources and carry out rigorous bibliographical and documentary searches.
  • Identify the main theories of international relations and their different fields (international theory, conflicts and security, international politics, etc.) to apply them in professional practice.
  • Produce and prepare the presentation of intervention reports and/or proposals.
  • Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.
  • Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
  • Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.
  • Use metatheoretical data to argue and establish plausible relation of causality and establish ways of validating or rejecting them.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Applying the political principles of freedom, equality, equity and sustainability to the analysis of the political economy.
  2. Contrasting social justice and sustainable development with the appropriate economic indicators.
  3. Critically assessing the dynamics arising from the interaction between State and the market.
  4. Critically evaluate the dynamics created in the interaction between the state and the market.
  5. Defining the economy concepts explaining these phenomena.
  6. Defining the role of the institutions and economic actors in the system, specially those in the public sector and interest groups and other social actors (NGOs, social movements, etc.).
  7. Demonstrating good writing skills in different contexts.
  8. Demonstrating to what extent social conflicts affect economic decisions.
  9. Describe the dynamics of economic systems, their limits and potential and their political consequences.
  10. Describing the dynamics of economic systems, their limits and potentialities and their political consequences.
  11. Developing critical thinking and reasoning and communicating them effectively both in your own and other languages.
  12. Developing self-learning strategies.
  13. Distinguishing the concepts of economy related with these problems.
  14. Distinguishing their main statistical indicators.
  15. Explain the theoretical models of economics taking into account different historical studies.
  16. Identify and analyse the roles of different actors, within and outside the state, in the operation of international economics and trade.
  17. Identify data sources and carry out rigorous bibliographical and documentary searches.
  18. Identify the problems faced by economic agents when making decisions in conditions of uncertainty, using different historical experiences.
  19. Identify the processes of economic integration in the world.
  20. Interpreting and applying English texts in an academic way.
  21. Managing the available time in order to accomplish the established objectives and fulfil the intended task.
  22. Produce and prepare the presentation of intervention reports and/or proposals.
  23. Realising effective oral presentations that are suited to the audience.
  24. Respecting the diversity and plurality of ideas, people and situations.
  25. Showing a good capacity for transmitting information, distinguishing key messages for their different recipients.
  26. Students must be capable of assessing the quality of their own work.
  27. Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.
  28. Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
  29. Students must be capable of managing their own time, planning their own study, managing the relationship with their tutor or adviser, as well as setting and meeting deadlines for a work project.
  30. Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.
  31. Synthesizing and critically analysing information.
  32. Use analytical tools for economics and international trade and apply them to different processes and case studies.
  33. Use metatheoretical data to argue and establish plausible relation of causality and establish ways of validating or rejecting them.
  34. Using the economic concepts to understand specific policies or conflicts.
  35. Working autonomously.

Content

BLOCK 1

Topic 1. Basic concepts of economics: What is economics? The economy as an aspect of social interactions. Scarcity and choice. Production possibilities frontier. Opportunity cost. Performance. Efficiency Inequality and discrimination. The gains of international trade.

Topic 2. The market: supply and demand: The market and competition. Introduction to curves of demand and supply. The equilibrium of the market. Shifts of the curves of supply and demand. Consumer surplus and producer surplus.

Topic 3. Consumer Theory: Market demand and individual demand; the elasticity of the demand: price-elasticity; income-elasticity and crossed-price-elasticity; income effect and substitution effect.

Topic 4. Priducer Theory: Technology and production function; cost function of the firm; total, average and marginal costs; variable costs and fixed costs; returns to scale; short and long run costs.

BLOCK 2

Topic 5. Perfectly competitive markets: Perfect competition; maximization of profits and the supply curve of the competitive firm; the supply curve of a competitive market.

Topic 6. Non-competitive markets and public intervention: Imperfect competition; monopoly; regulation of the monopoly; oligopolies and cartels; public policies on oligopolies; analysis of antitrust legislation; monopolistic competition.

Topic 7. Externalities and public goods: Externalities; public goods; imperfect information.

Topic 8. Public sector and distributional considerations. The tax system; distribution of income and equity; gender inequalities; uses of time.

BLOCK 3

Topic 9. Economic aggregates: Income and expenditure in an economy; definition, measurement and components of GDP; the limitations of GDP as a measure; unpaid work and the economics of care; the measurement of the cost of living and inflation.

Topic 10. The long-run economy: Production and economic growth; productivity; savings and investment.

Topic 11. Labor and the labor market: Labor demand and supply; definition and measurement of unemployment; the minimum wage; women's labor supply and salary wedge; the future of work.

BLOCK 4

Topic 12. Short-run economic fluctuations: Costs of inflation; economic cycles; the aggregate supply and demand model.

Topic 13. Macroeconomic stabilization policies: fiscal policy and monetary policy.

Topic 14. Macroeconomic analysis of open economies: Globalization; International movements of goods and capital; the balance of payments; nominal and real exchange rates; purchasing power parity.

Methodology

Directed activities (classroom): 35% of the ECTS

-Master classes

-Problem-based learning sessions

-Explanation and case discussion sessions (press articles, texts from international organizations such as the United Nations, or audiovisual material).

Supervised activities: 10%

-Tutorials (individual meetings or in small groups with the teaching staff)

-Autonomous activities: 50% of the ECTS

-Reading and study of the texts provided (textbooks, notes, other readings): 30%

-Solution of problems: 20%

Evaluation: 5%

Set of 6 evaluable activities

 

The proposed teaching methodology may undergo some modifications according to the restrictions imposed by the health authorities on on-campus courses. 

Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.

Activities

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Master classes 90 3.6 1, 2, 6, 5, 10, 12, 13, 14, 20, 25, 34, 3
Practice classes 15 0.6 1, 2, 6, 5, 10, 13, 14, 34, 3
Type: Supervised      
Tutorials 32 1.28 26, 12, 11, 24
Type: Autonomous      
Problem sets 60 2.4 26, 12, 35
Reading and studying of textbook and class material 70 2.8 29, 21, 35
Web information search 20 0.8 12, 34

Assessment

There will be 6 assessment activities conceived as a complement to the necessary regular attendance in class. Of these, 3 correspond to the first semester (which give rise to the overall grade of the semester), and 3 to the second semester. The global qualification of each semester weights 50% in the total grade of the subject.

Activities 1 (SPC first semester), and 4 (SPC second semester) correspond to assessment sessions consisting of solving problems or questions / written discussion about the students' texts in the classroom. Each one will weight 12.5% on the final grade (or, equivalent to 25% on each semester). For these sessions, the group can be split up on the days and times specified by the teaching staff.

Activities 2 and 5 will be complementary activities of class attendance, the exact nature of which will be set by each teacher among the following options: group videos; essays written in group; individual resolution of exercises commissioned by the teacher; Individual comment of a book agreed with the teacher. For each modality, the teacher will publish in advance a rubric explaining the evaluation criteria. Each of these activities will be considered 12.5% in the final grade (or equivalent, 25% of each semester).

Tests 3 and 6 correspond to individual tests or examinations of understanding and ability to apply the set of concepts and topics covered in the first and second semester respectively. Each one will weight 25% in the final grade (or equivalent, 50% of each semester). In order to average with the SPC of the semester, you must obtain a minimum mark of 3.5 in these tests. These tests will take place the day, time and place indicated by the Faculty.

Each teacher will be able to condition the evaluation of SPC activities and complementary activities to attendance and participation in class.

To pass the subject, the weighted average of the two semesters (weighting 50% each) must be equalto or greater than 5 points out of 10 and the grade for each semester must be equal to or greater than 3.5 points out of 10 .

In the event that the indicated average gives a FAILED rating, it will be possible to perform a compensatory assessment session (as long as the average is not lower than 3). Those students who show up in the compensatory test can obtain a maximum of 5 qualification for the semester for which they have done the test. This session will take place in accordance with the calendar set by the Faculty. If a student does the compensatory test of the two semesters, to pass the subject it will be necessary that the weighted average is equal to or greater than 5 and that on the part of each semester it has a grade equal to or greater than 3.5.

Students who initiate the continuous evaluation process will have a final grade approved or suspended from the subject, in any case not presented.

Approximate calendar evaluations

First semester

Test 1: SPC 1 - Last week, October or First week, November (date fixed by the teaching staff).

Trial 2: Complementary activity - to be carried out from September and deliver the first-second week of December (date fixed by the teaching staff).

Test 3: Written test (date, time and classroom set by the Faculty).

 

Second Semester

Test 4: SPC - Third-Fourth week March (date fixed by the teaching staff).

Trial 5: Complementary activity - to be done from February and hand over the first-second week of April (date fixed by the teaching staff).

Test 6: Written test (date, time and classroom set by the Faculty).

 

The proposed evaluation activities may undergo some changes according to the restrictions imposed by the health authorities on on-campus courses.

Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Complementary Activity -1st semestrer 12.5% of the annual grade 2 0.08 36, 16, 1, 26, 2, 6, 5, 8, 10, 9, 12, 11, 13, 14, 22, 15, 29, 21, 18, 19, 20, 25, 30, 28, 27, 24, 31, 34, 32, 4, 3
Complementary Activity -2nd semester 12.5% of the annual grade 2 0.08 26, 2, 6, 5, 8, 12, 11, 13, 14, 23, 29, 21, 20, 25, 24, 31, 34
Exam -1st semester 25% of the annual grade 2.5 0.1 1, 26, 2, 6, 5, 8, 10, 11, 13, 21, 25, 24, 31, 34, 3
Exam -2nd semester 25% of the annual grade 2.5 0.1 1, 26, 2, 6, 5, 8, 10, 11, 13, 21, 25, 24, 31, 34, 3
SPC -1st semester 12.5% of the annual grade 2 0.08 36, 16, 1, 33, 26, 2, 6, 5, 8, 7, 10, 9, 12, 11, 13, 14, 22, 15, 29, 21, 18, 19, 17, 20, 25, 30, 28, 27, 24, 31, 34, 32, 4, 3
SPC -2nd semestrer 12.5% of annual grade 2 0.08 1, 26, 2, 6, 5, 8, 7, 10, 12, 11, 13, 14, 21, 20, 25, 24, 31, 35, 34, 3

Bibliography

The following basic bibliography includes textbooks and reference books. Each instructor will recommend bibliography and specific references for specific chapters. It is the responsibility of the students to read the materials recommended for each chapter. The two main books that will be used are the following (each instructor will explain in which proportion and which chapters correspond to each part of the Teaching Guide):

P. Krugman, R. Wells i K. Graddy, Fundamentos de Economía, Editorial Reverté, 2013.

CORE Project (https://www.core-econ.org/), free e-book La Economía: https://www.core-econ.org/the-economy/es/

 

 

Additional recommended books:

Mankiw, G.N., Principios de economia, Ediciones Paraninfo, 6ª ed., 2012.

Samuelson, P., Nordhaus, W., Economía. Ed. McGraw-Hill, 19ª ed., 2010

Mochón, F., Economía. Teoría y Política. Ed. McGraw-Hill, 6ª ed., 2009.

Robinson, J., Eatwell, J., Introducción a la Economía Moderna, 2ª ed., 1982.

Ostrom, E., El Gobierno de los bienes comunes : la evolución de las instituciones de acción colectiva, Fondo de Cultura Económica, 2ª ed., 2011.

Perdices de Blas, L.; Gallego Abaroa, E., Mujeres economistas. Editorial del Economista. Madrid, 2007.

Castells-Quintana, D., La Esquiva Búsqueda de la Prosperidad: Una Breve Historia del Pensamiento Económico, Ediciones UAB, 2021.

 

Recommended link to additional resources for the subject:

http://introduccioeconomia-dea.uab.cat/

Software

  • Text editors (Word, Pages, LaTeX, ...).
  • Spreadsheets (Excel, Numbers, LaTeX, ...).
  • Slide show presentation (PowerPoint, Keynote, LaTeX, ...).