ID:
162003-M2
Dettaglio:
SSD: Economics
Duration: 48
CFU: 6
Located in:
BERGAMO
Url:
ECONOMICS AND FINANCE - 162-R-EN/PERCORSO COMUNE Year: 1
Year:
2026
Course Catalogue:
Overview
Date/time interval
Secondo Semestre (15/02/2027 - 28/05/2027)
Syllabus
Course Objectives
The course explores the main topics of advanced macroeconomics, with particular emphasis on the dynamic interactions between the real economy and the financial system. It examines the evolution of key macroeconomic variables—including output, employment, interest rates, exchange rates, and prices—through the analytical frameworks developed by the major schools of contemporary macroeconomic thought.
Compared with standard macroeconomics courses, this module places particular emphasis on the systemic role of finance and on how alternative theoretical approaches lead to different interpretations of economic growth, macro-financial stability, systemic risk, and sustainability.
The course is designed for students interested both in the theoretical foundations of macroeconomics and finance and in their practical application within financial institutions and markets. To this end, it combines the discussion of the principal macroeconomic models with the quantitative techniques employed in contemporary macroeconomic modelling, highlighting their underlying assumptions, analytical strengths, limitations, and fields of application.
The overall objective of the course is to provide students with the conceptual and analytical tools required to understand the systemic role of finance and its relationship with macroeconomic stability, financial instability, risk, and the different dimensions of sustainability.
Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to:
1. explain the theoretical structure, underlying assumptions, and analytical logic of the main models used in contemporary macroeconomics;
2. place the evolution of macroeconomic models within their appropriate historical, institutional, and theoretical context;
3. analyse, apply, and critically evaluate the macroeconomic models discussed during the course, identifying their strengths, limitations, and appropriate areas of application;
4. apply the theoretical and quantitative tools acquired during the course to analyse contemporary macroeconomic issues characterised by significant interactions between the real economy and the financial system;
5. develop an independent capacity for analysis and research on issues related to macro-financial stability, systemic instability, and economic, social, and financial sustainability.
Compared with standard macroeconomics courses, this module places particular emphasis on the systemic role of finance and on how alternative theoretical approaches lead to different interpretations of economic growth, macro-financial stability, systemic risk, and sustainability.
The course is designed for students interested both in the theoretical foundations of macroeconomics and finance and in their practical application within financial institutions and markets. To this end, it combines the discussion of the principal macroeconomic models with the quantitative techniques employed in contemporary macroeconomic modelling, highlighting their underlying assumptions, analytical strengths, limitations, and fields of application.
The overall objective of the course is to provide students with the conceptual and analytical tools required to understand the systemic role of finance and its relationship with macroeconomic stability, financial instability, risk, and the different dimensions of sustainability.
Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to:
1. explain the theoretical structure, underlying assumptions, and analytical logic of the main models used in contemporary macroeconomics;
2. place the evolution of macroeconomic models within their appropriate historical, institutional, and theoretical context;
3. analyse, apply, and critically evaluate the macroeconomic models discussed during the course, identifying their strengths, limitations, and appropriate areas of application;
4. apply the theoretical and quantitative tools acquired during the course to analyse contemporary macroeconomic issues characterised by significant interactions between the real economy and the financial system;
5. develop an independent capacity for analysis and research on issues related to macro-financial stability, systemic instability, and economic, social, and financial sustainability.
Course Prerequisites
None
Teaching Methods
Teaching is primarily delivered through face-to-face lectures, designed to provide students with the theoretical and methodological framework required to understand the main topics covered in the course. Particular emphasis is placed on explaining the logical structure of the models examined, making explicit their underlying assumptions, and discussing their interpretative implications through examples and applications drawn from real-world economic contexts.
Active student participation is strongly encouraged through classroom discussion. Students are also strongly encouraged to read the recommended materials before each class in order to facilitate informed and constructive participation.
Throughout the semester, tutorials, exercises, and additional learning materials will be made available to support progressive and independent learning and to enable students to assess their level of preparation before the final examination.
Upon students' request, group presentations on selected research papers may also be organised. Groups may consist of up to four students, and each group will present and discuss one assigned paper in a session lasting approximately 40 minutes.
Assessment Methods
Final assessment consists of two complementary components designed to evaluate different learning outcomes.
* **Part I – Short-answer examination** (**one-third** of the final grade). This component is completed on the official examination date and consists of a series of short open-ended questions covering the main topics discussed during the course, including, where applicable, student presentations. Its purpose is to assess students' understanding of the fundamental concepts and core knowledge developed throughout the course.
* **Part II – Take-home essay** (**two-thirds** of the final grade). Students are required to select **one of five essay topics** and develop it in a written paper of **2,500–3,000 words**, to be submitted within **10 days** of the publication of the examination questions. This component is designed to assess students' ability to analyse economic issues critically, develop independent arguments, and demonstrate research skills through the autonomous elaboration of course topics.
Students who choose to deliver an individual presentation during the course may use this activity as partial assessment in place of part of the final examination. In this case, the presentation accounts for **50% of the final grade**, resulting in:
* exemption from **Part I** of the examination;
* a reduced length requirement for the take-home essay (**1,800–2,500 words**).
The lecturer reserves the right to require an additional oral examination, including after completion of the written assessment, whenever this is considered necessary to verify the effective achievement of the intended learning outcomes and to ensure the appropriate allocation of the final grade.
* **Part I – Short-answer examination** (**one-third** of the final grade). This component is completed on the official examination date and consists of a series of short open-ended questions covering the main topics discussed during the course, including, where applicable, student presentations. Its purpose is to assess students' understanding of the fundamental concepts and core knowledge developed throughout the course.
* **Part II – Take-home essay** (**two-thirds** of the final grade). Students are required to select **one of five essay topics** and develop it in a written paper of **2,500–3,000 words**, to be submitted within **10 days** of the publication of the examination questions. This component is designed to assess students' ability to analyse economic issues critically, develop independent arguments, and demonstrate research skills through the autonomous elaboration of course topics.
Students who choose to deliver an individual presentation during the course may use this activity as partial assessment in place of part of the final examination. In this case, the presentation accounts for **50% of the final grade**, resulting in:
* exemption from **Part I** of the examination;
* a reduced length requirement for the take-home essay (**1,800–2,500 words**).
The lecturer reserves the right to require an additional oral examination, including after completion of the written assessment, whenever this is considered necessary to verify the effective achievement of the intended learning outcomes and to ensure the appropriate allocation of the final grade.
Contents
In line with the learning objectives of the degree programme, the course is designed to complement and extend the knowledge acquired in the other economics and finance modules, providing students with an advanced perspective on contemporary macroeconomic analysis.
The course is organised into three main thematic areas.
**Thematic Area 1 – Rationality, Information, and Coordination in Macroeconomics**
Building upon the foundations of Microeconomics and complementing Behavioural Economics, this module examines the microfoundations of modern macroeconomic analysis, with particular emphasis on:
* alternative concepts of rationality (substantive, procedural, and heuristic) and their role in macroeconomic modelling;
* the macroeconomic implications of asymmetric information, risk, and fundamental uncertainty;
* the transition from individual information to collective expectations, highlighting the role of common knowledge, conventions, herding behaviour, financial panics, and episodes of market euphoria.
**Thematic Area 2 – Money, Finance, and Macroeconomic Dynamics**
Building on the knowledge acquired in Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics, this module analyses the role of money and finance in shaping macroeconomic dynamics. Particular attention is devoted to:
* the macroeconomic implications of the non-neutrality of money and finance;
* monetary production economies and financial economies;
* the transition from independent markets to systems characterised by interdependence, coordination, and network structures;
* the role of time, time horizons, and the medium run in macroeconomic analysis;
* the interaction between business cycle dynamics and economic growth.
**Thematic Area 3 – Macroeconomic Models and Economic Policy**
In connection with the methodological and quantitative components of the degree programme, the final module introduces students to selected developments in contemporary macroeconomic modelling, with particular emphasis on their application to economic policy analysis.
Topics include:
* the role of equilibrium and disequilibrium in macroeconomic analysis;
* stability and instability in economic systems;
* dynamic modelling in continuous and discrete time, together with the associated methodological trade-offs;
* an introduction to heterogeneous-agent models;
* an introduction to Stock-Flow Consistent (SFC) models;
* the relationship between macro-financial instability, sustainability, and economic policy;
* an introduction to complexity economics and complex adaptive systems as a framework for interpreting contemporary macroeconomic systems.
The course is organised into three main thematic areas.
**Thematic Area 1 – Rationality, Information, and Coordination in Macroeconomics**
Building upon the foundations of Microeconomics and complementing Behavioural Economics, this module examines the microfoundations of modern macroeconomic analysis, with particular emphasis on:
* alternative concepts of rationality (substantive, procedural, and heuristic) and their role in macroeconomic modelling;
* the macroeconomic implications of asymmetric information, risk, and fundamental uncertainty;
* the transition from individual information to collective expectations, highlighting the role of common knowledge, conventions, herding behaviour, financial panics, and episodes of market euphoria.
**Thematic Area 2 – Money, Finance, and Macroeconomic Dynamics**
Building on the knowledge acquired in Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics, this module analyses the role of money and finance in shaping macroeconomic dynamics. Particular attention is devoted to:
* the macroeconomic implications of the non-neutrality of money and finance;
* monetary production economies and financial economies;
* the transition from independent markets to systems characterised by interdependence, coordination, and network structures;
* the role of time, time horizons, and the medium run in macroeconomic analysis;
* the interaction between business cycle dynamics and economic growth.
**Thematic Area 3 – Macroeconomic Models and Economic Policy**
In connection with the methodological and quantitative components of the degree programme, the final module introduces students to selected developments in contemporary macroeconomic modelling, with particular emphasis on their application to economic policy analysis.
Topics include:
* the role of equilibrium and disequilibrium in macroeconomic analysis;
* stability and instability in economic systems;
* dynamic modelling in continuous and discrete time, together with the associated methodological trade-offs;
* an introduction to heterogeneous-agent models;
* an introduction to Stock-Flow Consistent (SFC) models;
* the relationship between macro-financial instability, sustainability, and economic policy;
* an introduction to complexity economics and complex adaptive systems as a framework for interpreting contemporary macroeconomic systems.
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ECONOMICS AND FINANCE - 162-R-EN
Master's Degree
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ADVANCED MICROECONOMICS AND MACROECONOMICS