Computational Models in Political Economy - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0262112752 ISBN 13: 9780262112758

Publisher: Mit Pr, 2003

Synopsis

The use of innovative computational models in political economic research as a complement to traditional analytical methodologies.

Researchers are increasingly turning to computational methods to study the dynamic properties of political and economic systems. Politicians, citizens, interest groups, and organizations interact in dynamic, complex environments, and the static models that are predominant in political economy are limited in capturing fundamental features of economic decision making in modern democracies. Computational models―numerical approximations of equilibria and dynamics that cannot be solved analytically―provide useful insight into the behavior of economic agents and the aggregate properties of political systems. They serve as a valuable complement to existing mathematical tools.This book offers some of the latest research on computational political economy. The focus is on theoretical models of traditional problems in the field. Each chapter presents an innovative model of interaction between economic agents. Topics include voting behavior, candidate position taking, special interest group contributions, macroeconomic policy making, and corporate decision making.

About this title

About the Author

Ken Kollman is Associate Professor of Political Science and Senior Associate Research Scientist at the Center for Political Studies, ISR, at the University of Michigan.

Review

Paarsch and Hong have done a masterful job bringing together the mathematics, economic theory, econometrics, and computational tools necessary to analyze auction data. The result is an excellent source for both auction specialists and others who want to learn about this important area of research.

―Kenneth L. Judd, Hoover Institution, Stanford University

The particular promise of the computational approach to modeling social phenomena is the extent to which it attenuates the need to sacrifice empirical realism for analytical tractability. The papers collected in this volume both exemplify the approach at a very high level and deliver on its promise. As such, the book is both a collection of provocative contributions to our understanding of collective decision-making and a stimulus for further investment in computational models of political economy.

―DAvid Austen-Smith, Ethel and John Lindgren Professor of Political Science and Economics, Northwestern University

The pathbreaking papers in this collection clearly demonstrate the power of computational techniques for analyzing important questions in political science.

―Kenneth L. Judd, Hoover Institution, Stanford University

About this edition

• Publisher: Mit Pr
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0262112752
• ISBN 13: 9780262112758
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 320
• Editor: Kollman Ken, Miller John H., Page Scott E.