The Role of Measurement in Economics

First published in 1951, this book examines the role of measurement in obtaining and applying economic knowledge.

Richard Stone (Author)

9781107673861, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 10 October 2013

94 pages
24.4 x 17 x 0.5 cm, 0.17 kg

First published in 1951, and originally delivered as the Newmarch Lectures for 1948–9, this book examines the role of measurement in obtaining and applying economic knowledge. Esteemed economist Richard Stone, who went on to win the Nobel Prize in Economics, divides his topic into four sections: questions of fact and empirical constructs; the truth or falsity of a hypothesis; the estimation of parameters; and questions of prediction. This book will be of value to anyone with an interest in economics and the development of the discipline.

List of tables
List of diagrams
Preface
Part I. Introduction: 1. Newmarch and the progress of statistical inquiry
2. Economics and measurement
3. Four types of question in economics
Part II. Four Aspects of the Problem of Measurement: 4. Facts and empirical constructs
5. Deductively formulated theories and their verification
6. Postulates for the theory of choice
7. The estimation of parameters
8. The nature of prediction
9. A simple model
10. The development of a linear model over time
11. Prediction and economic policy
12. Practical objections to exact models
13. Prediction from static models
Part III. Some Illustrations of the Problems of Measurement: 14. Social Accounting
15. The three forms of economic activity
16. Transactions in the British economy in 1948: an example
17. The derivation of the example from published sources
18. The structure of transactions and some important national aggregates
19. The group structure of transactions
20. Systems of transactions from the viewpoint of accountancy
21. Statistical design in social accounting
22. Market demand from the viewpoint of economic theory
23. Other influences to be taken into account
24. The formulation of market demand relationships
25. Statistical problems
26. Demand analyses for the United Kingdom
27. Demand analyses for the United States of America
28. The sources used in the American analyses
29. Concluding remarks.

Subject Areas: Economics [KC]