Doctoral Dissertation Research: Power and Pesos: Economics, Expertise and National Currencies in Mexico and Argentina

博士论文研究：电力和比索：墨西哥和阿根廷的经济、专业知识和国家货币

• 批准号: 0957298
• 负责人: Erik Wright
• 金额: $ 1.5万
• 依托单位: University of Wisconsin-Madison
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2010
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2010-01-15 至 2010-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0957298&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Doctoral; Dissertation; Research; Power; Pesos

AbstractMonetary and exchange rate policies are among the most important areas of government regulation of the economy, but scholars have only recently begun to study the political determinants of these policies. Given that episodes of monetary instability over the past several decades, particularly in the developing world, have frequently been blamed on flawed policies, a better understanding of these determinants is a key concern for scholars and policymakers. This dissertation argues that conventional theories that emphasize interest group politics or electoral incentives are insufficient to account for variations across countries and over time in these policy outcomes. Instead, it is argued that the dynamics of competition among economic experts are a crucial determinant of policies. Drawing on recent developments in science and technology studies and sociological field theory, a framework is developed for analyzing processes of competition and learning among experts. This framework is applied to changes in monetary and exchange rate policy in Mexico and Argentina since the early 1980?s. Data include interviews with key informants, archival evidence, and a new database consisting of observations of the educational background and career trajectories of high-ranking officials in the central banks and finance ministries of these two countries. This study will inform recent debates in the science and technology studies literature about the nature of expertise and its relation to democracy and the role of economic science in shaping the economy. Findings will also be used to draw conclusions about the quality of expert advice and the design of monetary institutions.

抽象环境和汇率政策是政府对经济监管的最重要领域之一，但学者们直到最近才开始研究这些政策的政治决定因素。 鉴于在过去的几十年中，尤其是在发展中国家的货币不稳定情节，经常被归咎于有缺陷的政策，因此对这些决定因素的更好理解是学者和决策者的关键关注点。 这项论文认为，强调利益集团政治或选举激励措施的常规理论不足以说明各国之间的差异以及随着时间的推移。 相反，有人认为，经济专家之间竞争的动力是政策的关键决定因素。 利用科学和技术研究和社会学领域理论的最新发展，开发了一个框架来分析专家之间的竞争和学习过程。 自1980年代初以来，该框架适用于墨西哥和阿根廷的货币和汇率政策的变化。 数据包括与主要线人的访谈，档案证据以及新的数据库，该数据库包括对中央银行中高级官员的教育背景和职业轨迹的观察，以及这两个国家的财务部。这项研究将为科学与技术研究文献上的最新辩论提供有关专业知识的性质及其与民主的关系以及经济科学在塑造经济中的作用的辩论。 调查结果还将用于得出有关专家建议质量和货币机构设计的结论。