Dr Jordi Blanes i Vidal (NAB 5.28)

This course is available on the BSc in Management. This course is available as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit and to General Course students.

BSc Management students must take either MG205 or MG202.

Students must have completed Quantitative Methods (Statistics) (ST107).

Quantitative Methods (Mathematics) (MA107) or equivalent and Quantitative Methods (Statistics) (ST107) or equivalent

Simple and Multiple Regression; Hypothesis Testing; Mechanics and Limitations of OLS; Causality; Natural, Field and Laboratory Experiments. Panel Data and Fixed Effect Models. Instrumental Variables Regression. The main aim of this course is to provide a thorough understanding of the quantitative techniques which guide evidence-based managerial decision-making. It seeks to develop a framework in which students can examine whether the predictions of managerial, social or economic theory are supported by empirical evidence. Particular emphasis is made on (a) illustrating the many ways in which evidence is abused in the academic or managerial debate, and (b) trying to establish causality in the relationship between variables. The approach is both formal, as the course makes extensive use of econometric theorems and techniques, and solidly grounded in intuition, as it provides numerous examples of tests of real-life relations. Many of these examples will be illustrated using the STATA software package, and the students will be expected to learn the basics of data manipulation and regression running. A solid base of introductory statistics and probability (equivalent to that provided by ST107) and introductory algebra and calculus (equivalent to that provided by MA107) will be expected.

20 hours of lectures and 10 hours of classes in the MT. 20 hours of lectures and 10 hours of classes in the LT. 2 hours of lectures and 1 hour of classes in the ST.

Students on this course will have a reading week in Week 6, in line with departmental policy.

In every lecture, a question will be presented to the students. This question will approximately be of the type that will appear in the final exam. Students will have 10 minutes to answer the question and the answers will be marked by class teachers.

The textbook for the course is: James H. Stock and Mark W. Watson, Introduction to Econometrics, Second Edition, Pearson, 2007.

Two other very useful (complementary) books are: Christopher Dougherty, Introduction to Econometrics, Third Edition, Oxford University Press, 2007; Jeffrey M. Wooldridge, Introductory Econometrics - A Modern Approach, Third Edition, South-Western, 2006.

Exam (100%, duration: 3 hours) in the main exam period.