假设的现实性与易处理性之间的权衡——围绕《实证经济学方法论》争论的评析

弗里德曼《实证经济学方法论》的发表引发了一场关于经济学方法论的大争论,包括萨缪尔森、西蒙、纳格尔在内的众多知名学者都直接参与了该论战。时至今日,经济学界就经济学的主要目的已达成一致的共识,但是对经济学假设应该具备多大程度上的现实性还存在一定的争议。事实上经济学家经常面临着假设的现实性与易处理性的权衡,经济学理论的创新需要在假设的现实性与易处理性之间找到一个较好的突破点。     

公司内部人具有交易时机的选择能力吗?——来自中国上市公司内部人卖出股票的证据

本文以内部人卖出股票的交易为对象,研究发现从短窗口来看,上市公司内部人卖出本公司股票时表现出很强的时机把握能力。回归分析发现,在卖出股票时,除董事长和总经理外的内部董事和经理的超常回报显著高于监事和独立董事,董事长和总经理的超常回报可能低于监事和独立董事;内部人本人交易的超常回报显著高于内部人直系亲属;小规模公司内部人的超常回报显著高于大规模公司内部人;国有控股公司内部人的超常回报可能高于其他公司内部人。本文经验证据表明,内部人的时机选择能力可能来自于其掌握的非公开信息,且受公司信息透明度影响。     

威廉姆森假说:空间集聚与区域经济增长——基于中国省域数据门槛回归的实证研究

威廉姆森假说认为,空间集聚在经济发展初期能显著促进效率提升,但达到某一门槛值后,空间集聚对经济增长的影响变小,甚至不利于经济增长,拥挤外部性更倾向于分散的地理空间结构。本文基于巴罗(Barro)增长模型建立了门槛回归模型,利用中国30个省域1978—2008年的数据对威廉姆森假说进行了实证检验,考察了空间集聚与中国区域经济增长之间的关系。研究结果表明,空间集聚对经济增长具有非线性效应,即没有达到门槛值以前,集聚对经济增长具有正效应,但超出门槛值后,集聚会降低经济增长率,即威廉姆森假说在中国显著存在。研究同时还表明,中国经济发展呈现出趋同和发散并存的态势。最后,本文据此提出了相应的政策建议。     

Exports-led growth or growth-led exports in the case of China and Pakistan: An empirical investigation from the ARDL and Granger causality approach

There are various factors that determine and influence economic growth. From these, one of the most significant factors is exports, which play a vital role in the economic growth and development of a country. Trade theory states that exports enhance the growth of a domestic economy in various ways. This study attempts to empirically investigate the existence of the exports-led-growth (ELG) or growth-led-exports (GLE) hypotheses by adopting comparatively more contemporary techniques as compared to earlier classical approaches for China and Pakistan for the period of 1980 to 2015. The study found the existence of ELG for both China and Pakistan.     

Variations in farm consumption and their relationship to income: an empirical investigation of Illinois farm households

Empirical tests of household consumption have yielded mixed results regarding the validity of the life cycle/permanent income (LCPI) hypothesis. A significant problem with such studies is the difficulty in finding sufficient micro-level data on household expenditures. By using the recent rich quantity of such data in the Farm Business Farm Management (FBFM) data for Illinois farms from 1995 to 2009, the study reported here for farm households should provide more consistent results regarding the LCPI hypothesis. Applying an empirical model based on the LCPI hypothesis, this article identifies the determinants of farm consumption and the relationship to income. This study provides evidence that current income changes are not significant in explaining the consumption changes of farm households, thus supporting the LCPI hypothesis for farm households.     

Re-testing Prebisch–Singer hypothesis: new evidence using Fourier quantile unit root test

The Prebisch–Singer hypothesis in economics asserts that over time the relative price of primary goods relative to manufactured goods should experience a downward trend. To test the hypothesis, we must first establish the unit root properties of the relative price term and then regress the stationary series on a trend term. We use the quantile unit root test which allows for both smooth unknown numbers and the form of breaks in the trend function through a Fourier function to show that the relative price of 23 out of 24 primary goods is stationary. However, the Prebisch–Singer hypothesis is supported only in half of the primary commodities.     

LM cointegration tests allowing for an unknown number of breaks: implications for the forward rate unbiasedness hypothesis

This article extends the Lagrange multiplier (LM) cointegration test proposed by Westerlund and Edgerton (WE 2007) by allowing for an unknown number of breaks. Monte Carlo simulations provide two main results. First, a loss of power in the LM cointegration tests is detected when potential multiple breaks are ignored. Second, the modified testing procedures do not affect the asymptotic distribution and major properties of the tests of WE under the null, but noticeably increase their testing power in presence of multiple breaks. We also provide empirical applications of the proposed tests for the forward rate unbiasedness hypothesis (FRUH). The results reveal that the FRUH does hold when the effects of the multiple structural breaks are taken into account.     

Demystifying the Meese–Rogoff puzzle: structural breaks or measures of forecasting accuracy?

Structural breaks have been suggested by several economists as a possible explanation for the Meese–Rogoff puzzle, in the sense that an exchange rate model can outperform the random walk in terms of the out-of-sample forecasting error if the period under investigation is free of structural breaks. The results indicate that structural breaks cannot explain the inability of the flexible price monetary model to outperform the random walk. The only plausible explanation for the Meese–Rogoff puzzle is that forecasting accuracy is traditionally assessed by magnitude-only measures. When forecasting accuracy is assessed by alternative measures that do not rely exclusively on the magnitude of error, the monetary model can outperform the random walk regardless of the presence or otherwise of structural breaks.     

经济学的人性假定与地方政府职能定位

人性假定是经济学的重要理论基础,也是研究政府职能正确定位的重要前提。古典经济学认为人的自利行为会导致整个社会福利增加。但古典经济学这一假定遭遇到公用地灾难的质疑。市场调节具有自身的缺陷,正确理解和把握地方政府职能并进行定位,既可以弥补市场失灵,更能促进经济增长。     

数学推理方法与现代经济学的杜撰性质

本文针对现代经济学的研究方法及其理论内涵中存在的问题进行研究。通过对现代经济学假设条件及其思维程序的分析,并将科学研究的三种方法与现代经济学的研究方法加以比较,得出的结论是:现代经济学没有事实基础,只是一套凭空杜撰的理论。而数学推理只是用来杜撰理论的工具;经济社会"客观性"和经济学"科学性"幻觉的驱动以及经济学界生存竞争等使得现代经济学走向远离现实的空想境界;经济学正确的研究方法应该是观察经济社会这个天然实验室中真实的实验结果。