Università Roma Tre

SYLLABUS
THIS COURSE PROVIDES AN INTRODUCTION TO THE ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF PUBLIC POLICY ISSUES, CONCERNING THE GOVERNMENTS SPENDING, FINANCING AND REGULATORY ACTIVITIES.

LEARNING AND TEACHING
THE COURSE IS BASED ON LECTURES ON THE MAIN SUBJECTS OF PUBLIC ECONOMICS, FOLLOWED BY SEMINARS ON KEY ISSUES THAT ARE MEANT TO SUPPORT THE LECTURES AND ENCOURAGE INTERACTIVE STUDENT PARTICIPATION. LECTURES BY EXTERNAL SCHOLARS WILL BE ALSO PROVIDED.
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE COURSE
TO PROVIDE A GROUNDING IN THE PRINCIPLES UNDERLYING THE ROLE OF THE STATE, THE DESIGN OF WELFARE SYSTEMS, REGULATORY POLICIES AND FISCAL POLICIES. TO INTRODUCE THE PRACTICAL PROBLEMS INVOLVED IN IMPLEMENTING THESE PRINCIPLES. TO DISCUSS CRITICALLY KEY ISSUES IN PUBLIC ECONOMICS. TO DEMONSTRATE A FAMILIARITY WITH A RANGE OF POLICY ISSUES AND THE RELEVANT ANALYTICAL TOOLS.
CONTENTS
AN OVERVIEW OF THE MARKET PERFORMANCE AND OF THE ROLE OF THE STATE. ANTI-MONOPOLISTIC POLICIES AND MARKETS REGULATION. THE ECONOMICS OF PUBLIC SPENDING AND WELFARE PROGRAMMES (EDUCATION, HEALTH CARE, SOCIAL INSURANCE). FISCAL POLICY AND INSTITUTIONS IN THE EUROPEAN CONTEXT.

READING MATERIALS
CULLIS J. & P. JONES, PUBLIC FINANCE AND PUBLIC CHOICE, OXFORD U.P., 1998.
ROSEN H.S. & T. GAYER, PUBLIC FINANCE, MCGRAW-HILL, 2008.
STIGLITZ J.E., ECONOMICS OF THE PUBLIC SECTOR, NORTON, NEW YORK, 1999.
FURTHER READINGS WILL BE SUGGESTED AT THE BEGINNING AND THROUGHOUT THE COURSE.