Is an economy with adverse selection, moral hazard, or an incomplete set of risk markets "constrained" Pareto efficient? There are two sets of papers addressing this question, one asserting that, under seemingly quite general conditions, the economy is constrained Pareto efficient, the other (to...

This paper, after providing a critique of standard monetary theory based on the transactions demand for money, examines the effect of monetary policy (changes in reserve requires and open market operations) in a model with competitive, risk averse banks. The effects of changes in bank net worth...

This paper shows that market economies with search and in which wages are affected by efficiency wage considerations are not constrained Pareto efficient. Wages are not set at Pareto efficient levels, nor is the level of employment (unemployment) Pareto efficient. We identify the nature of the...

This paper summarizes the macro-economic and, in particular, monetary and financial market implications of recent developments in the micro-economic theory of imperfect information. These micro-economic models which lead to credit-rationing on the one hand and limitations in the availability of...

Capitalism since its inception has been marked by large fluctuations. The resulting episodic unemployment has been very costly. This paper provides an overview of alternative theories. Standard models (such as DSGE) have not provided insights into the causes of the fluctuations and the shocks...

In the aftermath of the Great Recession, there is a growing consensus, even among central bank officials, concerning the limitations of monetary policy. This paper provides an explanation for the ineffectiveness of monetary policy, and in doing so provides a new framework for thinking about...

This paper, an extension of the Presidential Address to the International Economic Association, evaluates alternative strands of macro-economics in terms of the three basic questions posed by deep downturns: What is the source of large perturbations? How can we explain the magnitude of...

This paper considers two central problems in our statistical frameworks which impair the ability to use wealth to assess economic sustainability or the impacts of economic downturns. Some increases in wealth may reflect increased economic rents--in particular, land and exploitation rents--and...

A significant amount of the increase in the wealth income ratio in recent decades is due to an increase in the value of land. We present a series of models that explain why land prices may have increased. These models help us understand the increase in both the wealth income ratio and wealth...