Economics Nobel Prize winner Joseph Stiglitz, well-known for sharply criticizing the conventional wisdoms of development economics, once summed up his views in a rhetorical question: “We have felt the pain, when do we get the gain?”
Stiglitz wanted to point out that standard development strategies require countries to pay a high price in exchange for the promise of a better future. The price comes in form of harsh poverty for some members of the society, income reduction for many, social strain, and increased inequality. While it is obvious that the “pai...
ISET Economist Blog
A blog about economics in the South Caucasus.
Jan
24
Jan
20
Why should we care about income inequality? According to Nobel Prize laureate Joseph Stiglitz and Harvard economist Jason Furman, “greater inequality leads to more political instability, and greater political instability leads to lower growth” (“Economic Consequences of Income Inequality”, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas: Journal Proceedings, 1998, pp. 221-232). Consequently, even if one does not care about income inequality directly, there may be reason to care about its indirect effects.
In their article "Income Distribution, Political Instability, and ...
Jan
17
When I think about the lack of human capital in Georgian agriculture, I am reminded of the 1997 Georgian movie “The Turtle Doves of Paradise”, directed by Goderdzi Chokheli. In a Soviet village, an ex-priest decides to teach basic knowledge to old peasants. He wants them to learn to read, write, and elementary calculations skills.
The movie addresses a problem that, fortunately, has been completely eradicated in the last decades. Nowadays, virtually all people living in Georgian villages are able to read and write (and probably also to multiply, subtract...
Dec
23
Like many, I like having more choice, but hate making choices. As a result, many of the most important choices in my life, including the choice among alternative partners, have been made for me by … others.
A 2010 New York Times article Too Many Choices: A Problem That Can Paralyze describes the findings of an experimental study by Sheena Iyengar, a Columbia Business School professor, which suggests that the problem of choice is indeed much more complicated than the standard textbook “truth” we are teaching ISET economics students. Here is how the experi...
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