Course Catalogue

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The course will be a thematic investigation of economic crises drawing from various literatures, including, crisis management, political economy and economics, business and economic history, sociology, and geography. The course will discuss the meaning, history, and theories of economic crises. In doing so, it will contrast and compare the most significant economic upheavals of the past century.

Lectures: 2hrs x 10weeks (plus 1 x 1hr revision session)

Seminars: 1hr

(Please refer to MyCampus for timetable)

Entry to an Honours programme in Business and Management or a GPA of 12 in the level 2 courses listed below for students taking an Honours programme in another subject.

MGT2002 Business and Management 2A

MGT2001 Business and Management 2B

Alternatively, entry to a Single Honours programme in Economics or Business Economics without previous study of Business and Management.

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ILO

Reassessments are normally available for all courses, except those which contribute to the Honours classification. For non-Honours courses, students are offered reassessment in all or any of the components of assessment if the satisfactory (threshold) grade for the overall course is not achieved at the first attempt. This is normally grade D3 for undergraduate students and grade C3 for postgraduate students. Exceptionally it may not be possible to offer reassessment of some coursework items, in which case the mark achieved at the first attempt will be counted towards the final course grade. Any such exceptions for this course are described below. 

This course aims to

■ Review some of the major controversies about economic cycles and prolonged depressions as well as the economic and social evolution of the western world (including Japan).

■ Assess the role of the international monetary and trading systems in the working of the global economy.

■ Assess underlying theoretical explanations of the business cycle and crises

■ Advance understanding of how Western governments responded to the challenges posed by the depression of the 1930s and of the post-2008 period.

By the end of this course students will be able to:

1. Critically assess some of the major debates about the nature and reasons behind prolonged economic crises.

2. Broadly evaluate how economic policy can influence business and economic performance.

3. Demonstrate a general understanding of how diverging social and political interests may shape economic policy.

4. Critically assess how economic crises and contingent historical occurrences may help stimulate new economic ideas and paradigms.

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