Good Economics for Hard Times

De: Abhijit V. Banerjee, Esther Duflo

Narrado por: James Lurie

The winners of the Nobel Prize show how economics, when done right, can help us solve the thorniest social and political problems of our day.

Figuring out how to deal with today's critical economic problems is perhaps the great challenge of our time. Much greater than space travel or perhaps even the next revolutionary medical breakthrough, what is at stake is the whole idea of the good life as we have known it.

Immigration and inequality, globalization and technological disruption, slowing growth and accelerating climate change--these are sources of great anxiety across the world, from New Delhi and Dakar to Paris and Washington, DC. The resources to address these challenges are there--what we lack are ideas that will help us jump the wall of disagreement and distrust that divides us. If we succeed, history will remember our era with gratitude; if we fail, the potential losses are incalculable.

In this revolutionary book, renowned MIT economists Abhijit V. Banerjee and Esther Duflo take on this challenge, building on cutting-edge research in economics explained with lucidity and grace. Original, provocative, and urgent, Good Economics for Hard Times makes a persuasive case for an intelligent interventionism and a society built on compassion and respect. It is an extraordinary achievement, one that shines a light to help us appreciate and understand our precariously balanced world.

Reseñas de la Crítica

"Excellent...Few have grappled as energetically with the complexity of real life as Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee, or got their boots as dirty in the process...A treasure trove of insight...[Readers] will be captivated by the authors' curiosity, ferocious intellects and attractive modesty."—The Economist

A Wall Street Journal BestsellerA USA Today Bestseller

"Carefully argued and backed with research...Good Economics is an effective response to Banerjee and Duflo's more thoughtful critics, some of whom argued that devotion to randomised trials had led to a narrowing of economics, in which complex questions that could not be scientifically tested should simply be set aside. The authors make a convincing case that empirical economics contains answers to many vexing problems, from populism to identity politics, especially when economists are willing to range outside their discipline's confines."—Financial Times

"'Good Economics for Hard Times' lives up to its authors' reputations, giving a masterly tour of the current evidence on critical policy questions facing less-than-perfect markets in both developed and developing countries, from migration to trade to postindustrial blight."—Wall Street Journal

"Their goal is to ground both sides of our national debate in hard evidence, and the process of coming up with ways to do that is pretty interesting in itself... Eager to distance themselves from the previous generation of economists who argued from first principles, Banerjee and Duflo say nothing that smells like special pleading. It would be hard to take umbrage with such studied humility. The authors admit, 'We clearly don't have all the solutions, and suspect no one else does either.' Even so, the prospect of a path towards consensus solutions through iterated experiments is enough to make for a compelling read."—National Review

"The studies they cite probe hot topics such as climate change, immigration and the viability of continued economic growth. Banerjee and Duflo synthesize the literature on what is agreed and what is controversial in an accessible, often entertaining way."—Nature

"Good Economics for Hard Times makes important policy connections and suggestions... Banerjee and Duflo explore traditional remedies (tariffs sure aren't the answer, they find, and job retraining and other trade adjustment tools are too narrow and take too long) and suggest some novel ideas... In crafting their carefully reasoned arguments, they marshal evidence assembled over decades from all sorts of areas-the fight against malaria, past efforts at tax reform, previous waves of migration-and propose commonsense solutions."—Foreign Policy

A Must Read for Americans

The best book on economics I've read. Easy to understand. Informative. Interesting. Let's get on the right track!

Great Discussion

Great overview of much research in economics. Great depiction of the complexities involved in solving economic and social problems.

Should be required reading at all universities in their economics programs.

Authors provide critical analysis of the shortcomings of current economic policies that divorce dollars and growth from individual and community well being! Please write more! Please get word out about this in depth look at our current situation and some possible strategies to improve the economic welfare of all.

A refreshing approach to a typically dry topic.

What the authors are able to do is look at economics holistically. The failures of other authors to realize is that economics involve people not just mathematical formulae. People are not always rational and incorporating the cultural and social elements into the explanations of the studies was an enlightening experience.

Well researched and timely

This book will surprise you with Many revelations that are contrary to the current mythology of economics and immigration and inequality that exists in our world. It will have helped me to make Better sense of The noise coming from various media outlets. It will also help me make better economic decisions That will help me to be part of the solution and not the problem.

A Must Read

I believe this book is one of the best economic books I have read. The author walks The reader through the current understanding of how policies and psychology effects economics. As well as explaining the studies and the people doing them.

A must read by both sides left and right

very up to date
lots of economics and interesting facts
easy to read or listen
you will end up better then you started

So much more than Economics

This is now in my top 10 list of books. The authors offer salient, fact-based writings of challenging issues facing our country. The book is devoid of politicization, finger-pointing, and hyperbole. Rather, the authors offer a comparing and contrasting views of the world at large and the effect of policy on impacts of great magnitude.

The title is much too un-assuming I fear, in that many people may be turned away from the topic of economics. This book is so much more than economics, it is true that most of the issues the authors discuss are rooted in economics because that's what they are. Moreover, the book covers many important facets of life from immigration, racism, climate change, inequality, international trade, and the list goes on.

This book has given me greater insight into many issues facing the country today. I highly recommend this book to anyone that will take the time to read and or listen to it.

Important Book

One of the most important and valuable books I have ever read. Needs to be absorbed broadly.

Worthy of a Nobel

In a world so discouragingly filled with loud voices spouting insane ideas, it is truly comforting to find evidence here in this book that there exist on this planet intellects such a the authors of this seminal work. The range undertaken and the sense applied to each topic is remarkable and always understatedly spot on.

Would that leaders had the good fortune and good sense to listen to these authors directly - or at least read/listen to this book.