News and Events
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“On Moral Inconsistencies: Dishonest Altruists, Honest Egoists and Reciprocating Cheaters”
by Professor Gizem Saka
Visiting Professor of Economics, Wellesley College
Monday, November 28, 2011
3:00 - 4:30pm
Olin 120
Abstract
Behavioral economics is a new field that draws on economics and psychology. Whereas traditional economic models portray individuals as rational, self-interested, self-controlled human beings, behaviorists know that people are deficient when it comes to these desirable characteristics. We are far less rational than we think (and hope) we are. Yet, our situation is not hopeless, because we are irrational in specific, systematic ways. That makes behavior, even in its irrationality, predictable. In this presentation, we will touch on three specific issues. We will discover why people procrastinate even when it is not in their long run best interest to do so. We will discuss ways of overcoming procrastination. Last but not least, we will analyze experimental results that show altruists to be cheaters and egoists to be truth-tellers.
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College Fed Challenge Competition 2011
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
7:45am -12:45pm
Federal Reserve of Boston
On November 9th a team of six Babson students participated in the Fed Challenge Competition. This is an academic competition for college undergraduates that promotes in depth analysis of the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy decisions in relationship to the US Macro economy. Babson’s visiting Professor Alexei Orlov helped the Babson crew, consisting of Joseph Blundo, Kirsten Daley, Andreas Hwang, Pierre Keusseyan, Bashar Lazaar and Mark Maclay, prepare for their presentation. While the Babson team didn’t qualify for one of the top four spots, Professor Orlov felt that our students represented the College with the flying colors and did a terrific job on their analysis of current economic conditions and in their recommendation for for Fed monetary policy. By all accounts students really enjoyed the experience of competing with teams from the best colleges in the New England. According to Babson senior Mark Maclay, “We all worked hard and pushed ourselves to learn more, think more, and push the limits of our knowledge and understanding of the most complicated concepts in economics.”
"India's Business Cycles: Evidence and Theory"
by: Rucha Bhate, Part-Time Lecturer
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
3:00 - 4:00pm
Horn 159
Abstract
India is one of the fastest growing emerging economies in the world today with an average quarterly GDP growth of 8.1 percent between 2004-2010. We use annual time series data and filtering methods to document the key statistics of India’s business cycle. Output, consumption and investment are more volatile in India as compared to the developed economies. Like in the developed countries, consumption is less volatile and investment is more volatile than output in the Indian data. Unlike in the former, investment is not highly correlated with output. We test whether a standard real business cycle model subject to technology and fiscal shocks, with parameters calibrated for the Indian economy can replicate the key features of India’s business cycle.
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“The European Debt Crisis and the New Economic Architecture in the EU: The Need for New Institutions and Structural Change”
By: Dr. Kostas Axarloglou
Monday, October 3, 2011
4:00 – 5:00pm
Olin Auditorium
Dr. Kostas Axarloglou is a professor of International Business and Strategy at Democritus University of Thrace, Greece. From 1994 to 2002, he was a Professor of Economics at Babson College, holding the Michael Gerrits Term Chair. Earlier, he taught at the Fuqua School of Business, Duke University and at the University of Michigan. Dr. Axarloglou earned his Bachelors Degree from the Aristotelian University of Thessaloniki, Greece and his Masters and Doctorate Degrees in Economics from the University of Michigan. He is currently doing research and consulting work in the areas of International Business (Foreign Direct Investments), Strategy (Options Theory), and Pricing. Dr. Axarloglou will provide an insider’s view of the Public Debt Crisis in the E.U. and a blueprint for needed policy reform and institutional change.
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Omicron Delta Epsilon International Honor Society
Each year the Economics Faculty elects a number of outstanding undergraduate students to the Omicron Delta Epsilon International Honor Society in Economics. This award is given to students who have consistently performed at a high level in their economics courses as well as in their overall Babson curriculum. It was our pleasure to induct 20 members of the ODE class of 2011 on Tuesday, May 3, 2011. They received their ODE Certificates and membership documents. We hope that their interest in the field of economics continues.
Nestor Azcona’s paper "Self-Fulfilling Currency Crises with Borrowing Constraints and Domestic Currency Debt" was accepted for publication in Open Economies Review.
“The Success of Ireland’s Foreign Direct Investment Strategy: A Reconsideration”, was accepted for publication by The Journal of International Business Research, publication date forthcoming.
“Inward Foreign Direct Investment in the U.S.: An Empirical Analysis of their Impact on State Economies”, accepted for publication by The Eastern Economic Journal, co-authored by Kostas Axarloglou and Hsiang-Ling Han, publication date forthcoming.
“FDI Spillovers in Member Countries of Integrated Markets”, completed but unpublished conference paper to be delivered in the spring of 2011.