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"Pressman, Steven"
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The Decline of the Middle Class: An International Perspective
In the 1990s, as economic growth rates increased and unemployment rates declined in the US, concern about the fate of the middle class waned. Did the 1990s economic boom halt or reverse a middle class decline in the US? Is a shrinking middle class strictly a US phenomenon with domestic causes, or is it a problem that has plagued most of the world economy? If the middle class shrank in the US and in other countries, what caused this to occur? This paper explores these issues. Several possible causes of the declining middle class are set forth -- changing demographic factors, structural economic changes, macroeconomic conditions, and a more Keynesian explanation, which depends on the importance of government spending. It measures the size of the middle class for a number of countries using the Luxembourg Income Study (LIS). Using the LIS, this article examines some of the explanations for a shrinking middle class. It concludes with some policy implications.
Journal Article
On the Role of Paradigms in Finance
Social theory can usefully be conceived in terms of four key paradigms: functionalist, interpretive, radical humanist and radical structuralist. The four paradigms are founded upon different assumptions about the nature of society and each generates distinctive theories, concepts and analytical tools. Finance theory is based on the functionalist paradigm and for the most part finance theorists are unaware of the philosophical tradition to which they belong. By relating finance to the four paradigms, Ardalan's work offers a concise understanding of the multifaceted nature of finance. He recommends theorists adopt a diversity of paradigms and discusses its benefits by application to the following phenomena: the development of academic finance, the mathematical language of academic finance, the mathematics of academic finance, money, corporate governance, markets, technology and education.
eBook
A Consensus on Taxing the Rich? Comparing Mainstream Economics, Piketty and Post-Keynesian Economics
Over several decades, income has become increasingly concentrated at the top of the distributional pyramid in many rich countries. Raising taxes on top income earners and top wealth owners has gained traction in many policy circles as a way to reverse this inequality surge. This paper examines the views of mainstream economists, Thomas Piketty and Post-Keynesian economists concerning the impact of taxation and optimal tax policy. We show that, in terms of taxing the rich, these three perspectives have a great deal in common, but there are also many disagreements. We argue that Piketty occupies a middle ground between mainstream and Post-Keynesian economics, and there is a good deal that Piketty and these two schools can learn from one another.
Journal Article
The mismeasure of Capital: a response to McCloskey
This paper is a response to Deirdre McCloskey's review essay, published recently in this journal, of Thomas Piketty's Capital in the twenty-first century. It argues that McCloskey has set up a number of straw men to attack. Furthermore, her three main arguments against Piketty are flawed. McCloskey wants human capital to be added to Piketty's measure of wealth; she contends that Piketty does not understand the supply-response mechanism; and she accuses Piketty of focusing on the wrong problem—inequality rather than poverty. This paper explains why these are all bad arguments.
Journal Article
The mismeasure of Capital
This paper is a response to Deirdre McCloskey's review essay, published recently in this journal, of Thomas Piketty's Capital in the twenty-first century. It argues that McCloskey has set up a number of straw men to attack. Furthermore, her three main arguments against Piketty are flawed. McCloskey wants human capital to be added to Piketty's measure of wealth; she contends that Piketty does not understand the supply-response mechanism; and she accuses Piketty of focusing on the wrong problem—inequality rather than poverty. This paper explains why these are all bad arguments.
Journal Article
Empirical Post Keynesian Economics
Highlights the major empirical questions and issues facing Post Keynesian economics. Featuring contributions by Post Keynesian economists, this text focuses on public policy and real-life analysis of the economic theory. It is of interest to upper-level undergraduate and graduate students, professional economists, and public policy makers.
eBook
The Middle Class Throughout the World in the Mid-2000s
This paper updates and extends my earlier work on how the middle class fares throughout the world based on the microdata sets that comprise the Luxembourg Income Study (LIS). Wave #6 LIS data, recently released and centered around 2004, provides an opportunity to assess what has happened to the size of the middle class around the world in the early 2000s. In contrast to the 1980s and 1990s, there was no noticeable decline in the middle class during the early 2000s. The paper provides further evidence that the size of the middle class in each nation depends mainly on government tax and spending policies. In particular, it shows the key role played by family allowances and paid family leave in supporting a national middle class.
Journal Article