Applied economics and public policy

Applied economics is both an art and a science. It requires a sound knowledge of economic theory, statistical techniques and data sources, together with an appreciation that behavioural changes can alter apparently established economic relationships. In this book, leading economists illustrate the diversity of the subject, and present a series of studies that demonstrate a range of techniques and their applications to economic policy. It contains chapters which explore approaches to macroeconomic modelling, analyses of corporate performance, new estimates of the evolution of incomes in the UK since the eighteenth century, and assessments of the role of applied economics in guiding macroeconomic policy. All the chapters were specially comrnissioned to mark the 50th anniversary of the Department of Applied Economics at the University of Cambridge, and the contributions to the book are a fitting tribute to the traditions of work instigated by Sir Richard Stone and carried forward by his successors.