Dr Melanie Meng Xue

This course is available on the MSc in Economic History, MSc in Economic History (Research), MSc in Financial History, 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.

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: EH426W cannot be taken with EH426A.

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 a critical discussion of their application in recent literature. Techniques discussed will include multiple regression analysis, regression diagnostics, instrumental variables, fixed and random effects, difference-in-difference analysis, regression discontinuity design, and more. The course is organised on a topic basis, with subjects chosen to illustrate particular theoretical, quantitative and methodological issues.

20 hours of seminars in the WT.

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

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

There is no mandatory textbook for this course, but the brief overview of quantitative methods during the first four weeks will follow:

• Angrist, Joshua D., and Jörn-Steffen Pischke. "Mostly harmless econometrics." In Mostly Harmless Econometrics (Princeton University Press), 2008.

Essay (100%, 5000 words).