Economic History
Code: 102141 ECTS Credits: 6| Degree | Type | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Business and Information Technology | FB | 2 |
Contact
- Name:
- Montserrat Llonch Casanovas
- Email:
- montserrat.llonch@uab.cat
Teaching groups languages
You can view this information at the end of this document.
Prerequisites
There are no prerequisites to take the course successfully. Nonetheless, it would be desirable for students to be familiar with the basic concepts of Global Contemporary History, Economics and Geography.
Objectives and Contextualisation
- Analyse the complexity and dynamics of economic processes.
- Identify and explain the main determinants that have made possible periods of growth, economic stability, recession and crisis, on a national and international scale.
- Establish the explanatory factors of the economic globalisation processes.
- Analyse the causes and consequences of inequality amongst countries and between individuals generated by capitalist economic development.
- Study technological revolutions and their impact on the economy and on business organisation.
- Assess and compare the sustainability of historical economic development models.
- Examine the differences between women and men (gender differences) in the labour market, in access to economic resources and in general welfare.
Learning Outcomes
- CM01 (Competence) Identify the social, economic, technological and environmental implications of academic-professional activities in the field of knowledge.
- CM02 (Competence) Evaluate the main inequalities and discrimination based on sex/gender present in society.
- KM01 (Knowledge) Describe earnings from trade and exchange.
- KM02 (Knowledge) Identify the forces that govern demand and supply.
- KM03 (Knowledge) Differentiate equilibrium effects in regimes (markets) other than competition.
- KM04 (Knowledge) Identify the constituent elements of technology and coasts.
- KM05 (Knowledge) Detail the main economic indicators and their components, justifying their calculation and use.
- KM06 (Knowledge) Identify the aspects that affect economic growth.
- KM07 (Knowledge) Relate the effects of disruptions of demand and supply in closed and open economies.
- KM08 (Knowledge) Describe the relationship between unemployment and inflation.
- KM09 (Knowledge) Describe the most remarkable technological, organisational and spatial aspects of revolutions in the field of production, emphasising organisational changes in business.
- SM01 (Skill) Identify the dynamic aspects of economic activity, taking as a reference the main phases of contemporary economic growth, and the main factors that have conditioned it.
- SM02 (Skill) Analyse the explanatory capacity of different theoretical models of economics, in relation to their initial assumptions, taking as reference different historical cases.
Content
1. PRE-INDUSTRIAL ECONOMY
1.1. The limits of population growth: The Malthusian ceiling
1.2. Agriculture, trade and manufacture
2. THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION
2.1 Agriculture revolution
2.2 Demographic transition
2.3 Determinants of the Industrial Revolution
2.4 Technological and organisational change
2.5 Modern economic growth and living standards
3. THE SPREAD OF INDUSTRIALIZATION (1830-1913)
3.1. Diffusion of industrialization in Europe
3.2. The beginnings of the Second Technological revolution
3.3. The rise of the United States
4. The International Economy (1860 - 1913)
4.1. Transport and Communications Revolution
4.2. Regional and International Migrations Regional and Intercontinental Migrations
4.3. International Trade
4.4. Capital Markets
4.5. The International Monetary System: the Gold Standard
4.6. The Great Divergence in Economic Development
5. The Crisis of Traditional Liberal Capitalism (1914 - 1945)
5.1. World War I and its economic consequences
5.2. The 1920s economic growth
5.3. The Great Depression 1929-33 and anticrisis policies
5.4. Second World War II (1939-45): economic factors
5.5. The role of the United States and the European economic recovery
6. THE NEW WORLD ORDER AND ECONOMIC GROWTH (1945-1973)
6.1. The Bretton Woods agreement and the new international relations
6.2. Golden Age of Capitalism
6.3. Centralised planned economies
6.4. Decolonisation and underdevelopment of the Third World
7. Structural Change, Third Technological Revolution and Second Globalisation (the last 50 years)
7.1. The 1973-84 crisis and the responses
7.2. New actors in the new growth model
7.3 The Third Technological Revolution and Globalisation
Activities and Methodology
| Title | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type: Directed | |||
| Exercise sessions | 17 | 0.68 | |
| Lectures | 32.5 | 1.3 | |
| Type: Supervised | |||
| Tutorship | 10.5 | 0.42 | |
| Type: Autonomous | |||
| Preparation of exercises | 31.5 | 1.26 | |
| Reading and independent study | 55 | 2.2 |
1. Lectures
The professor will develop an analytical conceptualisation and a synthesis for every topic in the programme. The aim is to facilitate the transmission of knowledge and to motivate the student in historical analysis.
2. Exercise sessions
The aim of the exercise sessions is to help students to achieve the specific knowledge of the subject and acquire transferable skills. There will be questions set for each topic and it is expected that students will work on them before class with the help of the lectures and reading material.
3. Studying from lectures and readings
The work done in class has to be complemented by the student individually or in-group work. The student should gain independence in the learning process and in the process attain the analytical tools to develop the critical thinking. This work should amount to hundred hours in addition to lectures and tutorials.
4. Tutorship
Students can use the professor's office hours to solve specific questions. Office hours will be announced in Campus virtual.
5. Campus Virtual
Campus Virtual is a useful tool to help students to get easy information about the logistics of the course and the basic materials that the professor considers essential for learning.
6. Use of Artificial Intelligence
The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies is not permitted at any stage of this course. Any assignment containing content generated by AI will be considered a breach of academic integrity and may result in partial or total loss of marks for the activity, or more serious sanctions in cases of greater severity.
Note: A 15-minute period will be reserved during one class session—within the schedule established by the faculty/program—for students to complete surveys evaluating the instructor's performance and the course/module.
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.
Assessment
Continous Assessment Activities
| Title | Weighting | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Excercise 1 | 5% of the final mark | 0 | 0 | CM02, KM05, KM06 |
| Excercise 2 | 5% of the final mark | 0 | 0 | KM01, KM05, KM06 |
| Excercise 3 | 5% of the final mark | 0 | 0 | KM05, KM07 |
| Final Exam | 45% of the final mark | 2 | 0.08 | CM02, KM01, KM02, KM03, KM04, KM05, KM06, KM07, KM08, KM09, SM01, SM02 |
| Midterm exam | 40% of the final mark | 1.5 | 0.06 | CM01, KM01, KM02, KM03, KM04, KM05, KM06, KM07, KM09, SM01, SM02 |
The evaluation will consist of:
- Three practical exercises. Weight of the grade for each exercise = 5% of the course grade. These practical exercises cannot be reprogrammed.
- The midterm exam has two parts, each worth 50% of the exam mark. The first part consists of twenty multiple-choice questions each worth 0.5 points if the answer is correct, -0.17 if the answer is incorrect and 0 if the question is not answered. The second part consists of 4 questions worth 2.5 points each. Weight of the grade of the midterm exam = 40% of the course grade.
- The final exam has two parts, each worth 50% of the exam mark. The first part consists of twenty multiple-choice questions each worth 0.5 points if the answer is correct, -0.17 if the answer is incorrect and 0 if the question is not answered. The second part consists of 4 questions worth 2.5 points each. Weight of the grade of the final exam = 45% of the course grade.
The course will be considered passed if the following two requirements are met:
- The average grade for the course is equal to or higher than 4.9, and
- The final exam grade is equal to or higher than 4.
- If a student meets the first requirement but not the second, they will receive an average course grade of 4.5 and will be allowed to take the retake exam, in accordance with the provisions set out in the "Retake Process" section found below.
- If a student meets the second requirement but not the first, or meets neither, they will receive the overall course grade resulting from the direct application of the previously stated weightings and will be allowed to take the retake exam, in accordance with the provisions set out in the "Retake Process" section found below.
The questions will be on the topics explained in the theory and practical sessions and on the contentof the readings and teaching materials indicated by the group professor.
Synthesis test: students who wish to opt for the synthesis test will have to apply by e-mail to the group's professor before 1 October 2025. The synthetic test will take place on the day of the final exam set by the Faculty. It will consist of forty multiple-choice questions and eight essay questions concerning all the diferents parts of the subject, practical and theoretical.
CAUTION:
1. A student is considered UNEVALUABLE if he has completed less than 30% of the assessed activities. "The qualification of UNEVALUABLE implies exhausting all the rights inherents to enrolment in the subject".
2. Only midterm and final exams can be reprogrammed, always exceptionally and after obtaining the explicit aproval of the Grade Coordinator. All other types oftests performed during the course will NOT be reprogrammed.
3. This subject does not offer the option for comprehensive evaluation.
Calendar of evaluation activities
The dates for the four evaluation exercises will be announced in advance by the professor. These tests will not be rescheduled for any reason. If a student is unable to attend on the announced date to take the test, they will receive a zeromark and will not have the opportunity to take the test on another day.
The dates for the midterm, final, and retake exams can be found inthe School's exam calendars posted on the website.
"The scheduling of assessment tests cannot be modified unless there is an exceptional and duly justified reason that prevents the evaluation activity from taking place. In such cases, the persons responsible for the degree programs, after consulting with the teaching staff and the affected students, shall propose a new schedule within the corresponding teaching period." Section 1 of Article 115. (Academic Regulations UAB)
Students of the School of Economics and Business who, in accordance with the previous paragraph, need to change an assessment date must submit a request by completing the document "Request for Exam Rescheduling" at:
https://eformularis.uab.cat/group/deganat_feie/nou-reprogramacio-de-proves
Grade revision process
After all grading activities have ended, students will be informed of the date and way in which the course marks will be published. Students will also be informed of the procedure, place, date and time of the revision of exams following University regulations.
Retake Process
"To be eligible to participate in the retake process, students must have previously been evaluated in a set of activities that represent at least two-thirds of the total grade for the subject." Section 3 of Article 112 ter. Retake (Academic Regulations UAB). Students must have obtained an average grade between 3.5 and 4.9. The retake system will be applied to students who choose the synthesis exam.
Students who take and pass the retake exam will pass the subject with a grade of 5. Otherwise, they will maintain their final grade.
The retake exam consists of two parts, each worth 50% of the exam grade. The first part consists of twenty multiple-choice questions that will be scored as follows: 0.5 points for a correct answer, -0.17 points for an incorrect answer, and 0 points for an unanswered question.The second part consists of four short-answer questions with a maximum score of 2.5 points each.
Non assessed Mark
A student is considered "Non-Assessed" in this subject as long as she/he has not participated in any of the assessment activities. The qualification of "Non-Assesed" implies the exhaustion of the inherent rights related to the registration of this subject
Irregularities in evaluation activities
Without prejudice to other disciplinary measures that may be deemed appropriate, and in accordance with current academic regulations, "in the event that the student carries out any irregularity that may lead to a significant variation in the grade of an evaluation activity, this evaluation activity will be marked with a 0, regardless of the disciplinary process that may be instructed. In the event of several irregularities in the evaluation activities of the same subject, the final grade of this subject will be 0". Section 10 of Article 116. Results of the evaluation. (UAB Academic Regulations)
Bibliography
Comín, Francisco (2011) Historia Económica Mundial. De los orígenes a la actualizad, ed. Alianza Editorial, Madrid, 2011.
Feliu, Gaspar- C. Sudrià (2013) Introducció a la història econòmica mundial, ed. Publicacions de la Universitat de València, València. https://csuc-uab.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/34CSUC_UAB/avjcib/alma991000676159706709
Palafox, Jordi(ed) (2014) Los tiempos cambian. Historia de la economía, València: Tirant Humanidades. https://login.are.uab.cat/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsebk&AN=2217426&site=eds-live
Zamagni, Vera (2016) Una historia económica. Europa de la Edad Media a la crisis del euro, ed. Crítica, Barcelona.
Software
Excel, Word and PowerPoint.
Groups and Languages
Please note that this information is provisional until 30 November 2025. You can check it through this link. To consult the language you will need to enter the CODE of the subject.
| Name | Group | Language | Semester | Turn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (PAUL) Classroom practices | 201 | Catalan | second semester | morning-mixed |
| (TE) Theory | 20 | Catalan | second semester | morning-mixed |