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Harvard. Graduate economic analysis and public policy. Hansen and Slichter, 1946-47

 

While the paired Harvard graduate economic courses Economics 106a and 106b shared a common title “Economic Analysis and Public Policy”, it appears as though Alvin Hansen taught a course in macroeconomic analysis and his colleague Sumner Slichter taught a topics in public policy course (parallel play). Hansen’s course attracted 59 students while Slichter’s course had 25 enrolled students, so the two courses were hardly connected at the hip. For the first term course (Hansen) we have a detailed outline, reading list and exam questions, I could only find a rough outline (more of a course description), a very incomplete set of reading assignments, and the final exam for the second term course (Slichter).

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Course Enrollment
Fall term

[Economics] 106a. (fall term) Professor Hansen.—Economic Analysis and Public Policy

Total 59:  22 Graduates, 25 Public Administration, 3 Radcliffe, 9 Others.

Source:  Harvard University. Report of the President of Harvard College for 1946-1947, p. 70.

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ECONOMICS 106a
ECONOMIC ANALYSIS AND PUBLIC POLICY
1946-1947

General Outline of Course

  1. Concepts and Statistical Measures of Aggregate Income and Its Component Parts:

    1. Gross National Product.
    2. Net National Product.
    3. National Income.
    4. Income Payments.
    5. Factor Costs.
    6. Component Parts of National Income.

  2. Over-all Determinants of National Income:

    1. Consumption and Savings Functions: Investment and its Determinants; Acceleration and Multiplier Principles; Consumption and Income Distribution.
    2. The Interest Rate and the National Income.
      1. Classical vs. Monetary Interest Rate Theories: Loanable Fund Theory vs. Liquidity Preference.
      2. The Role of the Interest Rate: In Investment, Consumption, Income Distribution, etc.
      3. The Interest Rate and Economic Stability; The Case for
        1. Fluctuating Rates;
        2. Stable Rate;
        3. Declining Rate.
      4. The Interest Rate and Income Velocity of Money.
      5. The Role of Central Bank Credit in Income Formation.
    3. Costs and Profits.
      1. Wage Policy: Wages as Costs, and Wages as Purchasing Power; Wage Rates and Degrees of Utilization of Plant Capacity; Wages and Value of Output at Different Employment Levels.
      2. Price Policy: Profits and the Over-all Economy; Profits and Monopoly; Profits and Income Distribution; Profits and the Inducement to Invest; Profits and the Savings Function.
    4. The Role of the Government in Income Formation.
      1. Monetary Policy: Neutral vs. Positive Program.
      2. Tax Policy.
      3. Borrowing; Public Debt.
      4. Expenditure Policy; Standard Services; Developmental Outlays; Compensatory Spending.

  3. Income, Output, and Prices:

    1. Income Flows and the General Level of Prices.
    2. Income Elasticity and Price Elasticity in Different Industries.
    3. The Effect of Over-all Shifts in Income on Demand in Different Industries; Demand Schedules; Indifference Maps.
    4. The Effect of Over-all Shifts in Income on Supply.
      1. The Economics of the Firm: Marginal, Average, and Total Unit Cost Curves.
      2. The Economics of an Industry: Differential Cost; Increasing, Decreasing, and Constant Cost.
    1. Monopoly and Monopolistic Competition: Marginal Revenue and Marginal Cost; Monopoly and Efficiency; Administrative Prices.
    2. Income Flows, Distributive Shares, and Income Distribution.
    3. Full Employment and the Problems of Wage Inflation.
    4. Planning vs. Automatic Adjustments in a Free Market.

 

Economic 106b: Public Policy Decisions: Analysis of the Effect of Public Policy Decisions Upon the Over-all Economy, Upon Various Producing Groups, and Upon Other Sectors of the Population.

Source:  Harvard University Archives. Syllabi, course outlines and reading lists in economics. 1895-2003.(HUC 8522.2.1) Box 4, Folder “Economics, 1946-1947 (2 of 2)”.

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ECONOMICS 106[a]
READING ASSIGNMENT

  1. Concepts and Statistical Measures of Aggregate Income and Its Component Parts:

    1. Required Reading:
      1. Hicks and Hart—The Social Framework of the American Economy, chapters 13-17.
      2. Livingston, S. Morris—Markets After the War, Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce.
      3. Hansen, Alvin H.—Economic Policy and Full Employment, Chapters III-IV, (McGraw-Hill, 1946).
      4. Hansen and Perloff—State and Local Finance in the National Economy, (Norton, 1944), pp. 223-227.
      5. Basic Facts on Employment and Production, U.S. Senate Committee on Money and Banking, Print No. 4, 79th Congress, First Session.
      6. Survey of Current Business:
        1. May, 1942; pp. 9-13 (Gross National Product, 1929-1941).
        2. February, 1946; pp. 1-32 (The Economy of War and Transition).
      7. British White Paper on War Finance, British Government White Paper (Cmd. 6520) presented to Parliament on April 1944 (Reprinted in Federal Reserve Bulletin, July 1944, pp. 655-669).
      8. Federal Reserve Bulletin, August 1946 (Current Price Developments), pp. 833-843.
    2. Suggestions for Additional Reading:
      1. Clark Colin—The Conditions of Economic Progress, 1940.
      2. Kuznets, Simon—National Income and its Composition, 1919-1938, 1941.
      3. Martin, Robert F.—National Income in the U.S., 1799-1938, National Industrial Conference Board, 1939.
      4. The National Income of Principal Foreign Countries. The Conference Board Economic Record, August 3, 1939, Volume I, No. 4.
      5. Bowley, A. D.—Studies in the National Income, 1924-1938, 1942.
      6. Lindahl, Dahlgren, and Koch—National Income of Sweden, 1861-1930, 1937.
      7. Articles:
        1. Stone, Richard—“National Income in the United Kingdom and the United States”, Review of Economic Studies, Winter 1942-43, Volume X, No. 1.
        2. Kalecki, M.—“The White Paper on the National Income and Expenditure in the Years 1938-43”, Oxford Institute of Statistics Bulletin, July 1, 1944, Volume 6, No. 9.
        3. Dacey, W.M.—“The 1944 White Paper on National Income and Expenditure”, Economic Journal, June-September, 1944.
        4. Gilbert and Jaszi—“The 1945 White Paper on National Income and Expenditure”, Economic Journal, December 1945.

  2. Over-all Determinants of the National Income:

    1. Required Reading:
      1. Keynes, J.M.—General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money, (1936), Chapter 3, pp. 96-106; Chapters 9, 10, 13, 15, 18, 24.
      2. Meade and Hitch—Economic Analysis and Policy, (1938) Part I, Chapters 1-2; 5-9.
      3. Lerner, A. P.—The Economics of Control, (1944), Chapters 22, 23, 24.
      4. Robertson, D. H.—Essays in Monetary Theory, (1940), Chapter 1.
      5. British Government White Paper on Employment Policy, (Reprinted by MacMillan Co. as pamphlet entitled “Employment Policy”), 1944.
      6. Slichter, S. H.—“The Conditions of Expansion”, American Economic Review, March 1942.
      7. Hansen, Alvin H.—Fiscal Policy and Business Cycles, (Norton, 1941), Part III, Chapters 11-15.
    2. Suggestions for Additional Reading
      1. Beveridge, Sir William—Full Employment in a Free Society, (1944).
      2. Haberler, G.—Prosperity and Depression, (1941), Chapters 8, 13.
      3. Cassel, Gustav—On Quantitative Thinking in Economics, (1935), Chapter 4.
      4. Robinson, Joan—Introduction to the Theory of Employment.
      5. Hicks, J. R.—Value and Capital, (1938), Chapters 20, 21, 22.
      6. Hansen and Perloff—State and Local Finance in the National Economy, (1944), Chapters 9, 11.
      7. Hansen, Alvin H.:
        1. Full Recovery or Stagnation, (Norton, 1938), Chapters 1, 2, and Appendix.
        2. Economic Policy and Full Employment, (McGraw-Hill, 1946).
      8. Harris, S. E. (Editor):
        1. Economic Reconstruction, (McGraw-Hill, 1945), Chapters 10-16.
        2. Postwar Economic Problems, (McGraw-Hill, 1943).
      9. Jobs and Markets, de Chazeau, Hart, and Others, Committee on Economic Development, (McGraw-Hill, 1946).
      10. Financing American Prosperity; A Symposium of Economists, Twentieth Century Fund, 1945.

  3. Income, Output and Prices; Economics of the Firm; Economics of an Industry; Monopoly and Monopolistic Competition, etc.

    1. Required Reading:
      1. Meade and Hitch—Economic Analysis and Policy, Part II, Competition and Monopoly, Chapters 1-8; Part III, The Distribution of Income, Chapters 1-5; Part IV, The Supply of the Primary Factors of Production, Chapters 1-4; Appendix on Graphs, pp. 411-424; Charts I, II (end of book).
      2. Boulding, K. E.—Economic Analysis, pp. 421-470; 485-509; 596-634; 658-663; (1941).
      3. Chamberlin, E. H.—The Theory of Monopolistic Competition, 1942, Chapters 4, 5, 8.
      4. Hicks, J.R.—Value and Capital, Chapters 1, 2, 3.
      5. Wicksell, K.—Lectures, Volume I, Part III.
    2. Suggestions for Additional Reading:
      1. Stigler—The Theory of Competitive Price.
      2. Robinson, E.A.G.—Monopoly, (Cambridge Series), Chapters 1-3; 6; 8-9;12.
      3. Burns, Arthur—Decline of Competition.
      4. Walker, E.R.—From Economic Theory to Policy, (University of Chicago Press), Chapters 1, 3, 4, 10, 12.
      5. Purdy, Lindahl, and Carter—Market Organization and Price Policy, Prentice-Hall.
      6. Hitch and Hall—Oxford Economics Papers, Volume I, Business Pricing Policy.

Source:  Harvard University Archives. Syllabi, course outlines and reading lists in economics. 1895-2003.(HUC 8522.2.1) Box 4, Folder “Economics, 1946-1947 (2 of 2)”.

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1946-47
HARVARD UNIVERSITY
ECONOMICS 106a

Final. January, 1947

(Write on any THREE questions)

    1. Explain what is meant by Gross National Product including in your discussion the following:
      1. Distinguish and compare Gross National Product, Net National Product, National Income, Income Payments, Disposable Income.
      2. Outline and discuss the component parts of the Gross National Product from two viewpoints: (a) Income-generation or outlays; (b) Disposal of income.
    2. State the savings-investment problem and show clearly the role of the consumption function (propensity to consume schedule) with respect to this problem. With respect to savings and investment discuss the ideas of Robertson and Keynes.
    3. Give an explanation of cost curves (marginal, variable and total unit costs) and show how this type of cost analysis throws light on the problem of inflation under conditions of full employment.
    4. Write an essay (about one hour) on any one (or two if you prefer) of the following:
      1. Keynes: General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money.
      2. Beveridge: Full Employment in a Free Society.
      3. Lerner: Economics of Control.
      4. Chamberlin: The Theory of Monopolistic Competition.
      5. Hansen: Fiscal Policy and Business Cycles, or Economic Policy and Full Employment.

Source:  Harvard University Archives. Final Examinations, 1853-2001.Box 13, Papers Printed for Final Examinations. History, History of Religions, … , Economics, … , Military Science, Naval Science. January, 1947.

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Course Enrollment
Spring term

[Economics] 106b. (spring term) Professor Slichter.—Economic Analysis and Public Policy

Total 25:  10 Graduates, 11 Public Administration, 1 Radcliffe, 3 Others.

Source:  Harvard University. Report of the President of Harvard College for 1946-1947, p. 70.

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READING ASSIGNMENT FOR ECONOMICS 106b
February 18, 1947

Pigou—Economics of Welfare

(Second Edition) Part III

Ch. XIV, pp. 520-542
Ch. XVI, pp. 553-566
Ch. XVIII, pp. 572-578

(Third Edition) Part III

Ch. XIV, pp. 548-571
Ch. XVII, pp. 592-604
Ch. XIX, pp. 611-617

(please post on bulletin board)

Source:  Harvard University Archives. Syllabi, course outlines and reading lists in economics. 1895-2003.(HUC 8522.2.1) Box 4, Folder “Economics, 1946-1947 (2 of 2)”.

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March 19, 1947

Please put on reserve for Economics 106

Review of Economic Statistics, May 1938
American Economic Review Proceedings, May 1945
American Economic Review, September 1940
American Economic Review, December 1946

Sumner H. Slichter

Source:  Harvard University Archives. Syllabi, course outlines and reading lists in economics. 1895-2003.(HUC 8522.2.1) Box 4, Folder “Economics, 1946-1947 (2 of 2)”.

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[Final] May 19, 1947
Economics 106[b]
Economic Analysis and Public Policy

(Three Hours)

I

(a) Discuss the effect of increase in employment upon the size of the workforce.

(b) So long as there are substantial amounts of additional resources, increases in expenditures may be counted upon primarily to produce increases in employment rather than increases in prices. Discuss the validity of this statement.

II

“A wage structure based upon ability to pay would prevent the best distribution of men and resources among enterprises and would thus limit the output of industry.” Do you agree? Explain.

III

History shows that the price level has been subject to great fluctuations. The cost of living, for example, has risen 50 percent since 1940. Wholesale prices have risen even farther. Within several years after the First World War there was a substantial drop in the price level. In view of the history of prices, do you regard original cost as a fair guide for determining the rate base for public utilities?

IV

“A progressive income tax tends to reduce the attractiveness of risky ventures to investors more than the attractiveness of less risky ventures.” Do you agree? Can this effect be prevented? How? If two ventures offer an even chance of a return above 5 percent and below 5 percent, how would you determine which is the more risky?

V

It is asserted that import duties fall in part upon the foreigners who consume the goods exported by the country levying the duty. Analyze this proposition and point out its limitations.

 

Source:  Harvard University Archives. Final Examinations, 1853-2001. Box 13, Folder “Final examinations, May 1947 ( 3 of 9)”.

Image Source:  Hansen and Slichter from Harvard Class Album, 1947.