EH426      Half Unit
Quantitative Topics in Economic History I: Cross-section and panel data

This information is for the 2019/20 session.

Teacher responsible

Dr Natacha Postel-Vinay SAR 613

Availability

This course is available on the MSc in Economic History, MSc in Economic History (Research), MSc in Global Economic History (Erasmus Mundus) and MSc in Political Economy of Late Development. This course is available with permission as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit.

Pre-requisites

Students enrolled for this course are expected to have completed at least introductory undergraduate courses in statistics and/or econometrics and economic theory. The course will begin with a revision of the main quantitative approaches but will not provide a comprehensive training in econometric methods or computer applications.

Please note: EH426 cannot be taken with EH422.

 

Course content

The course will provide an overview of quantitative approaches in economic history mainly using cross-section and panel data. The course will examine the use of quantitative techniques through practical exercises and critical discussion of their application in recent literature.  Techniques discussed will include multiple regression analysis, regression diagnostics, instrumental variables, limited dependent variables, sample selection corrections, and panel data analysis. The course is organised on a topic basis, with subjects chosen to illustrate particular theoretical, quantitative and methodological issues.s.

Teaching

20 hours of seminars in the MT.

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

Formative coursework

Students are expected to write one essay or equivalent pieces of written work.

Indicative reading

There is no mandatory textbook for this course, but the brief overview of quantitative methods during the first four weeks will follow Wooldridge, J.M. (2009), Introductory Econometrics: A Modern Approach, International Student Edition. Useful background readings include J.L. Van Zanden, The Long Road to the Industrial Revolution: The European Economy in a Global Perspective, 1000-1800 (Leiden, 2009); K.H. O'Rourke and J.G. Williamson, Globalization and History: The Evolution of a Nineteenth-Century Atlantic Economy (Cambridge MA, 1998); C. Goldin and L.F. Katz, The race between education and technology (Cambridge, MA, 2008); D. Greasley and L. Oxley (eds.), Economics and History: Surveys in Cliometrics (Oxford, 2011).6).

Assessment

Essay (50%, 2500 words) in the LT.
Take home exam (50%).

Teachers' comment

Survey questions on feedback to students may be non-informative because assessed work comes later in the term than the survey.

Key facts

Department: Economic History

Total students 2018/19: 15

Average class size 2018/19: 12

Controlled access 2018/19: No

Value: Half Unit

Guidelines for interpreting course guide information

Personal development skills

  • Self-management
  • Team working
  • Problem solving
  • Application of information skills
  • Communication
  • Application of numeracy skills
  • Specialist skills