V. Inflation, Unemployment, & Stabilization

(20–30%)

A. Fiscal and monetary policies

1. Demand-side effects

2. Supply-side effects

3. Policy mix

4. Government deficits and debt

B. Inflation and unemployment

1. Types of inflation

a. Demand-pull inflation

b. Cost-push inflation

2. The Phillips curve: short run versus long run

3. Role of expectations 

 

Video Lessons

PowerPoint

 

From the College Board

Public policy affects the economy’s output, price level, and level of employment, both in the short run and in the long run. Students should learn to analyze the impacts of fiscal policy and monetary policy on aggregate demand and on aggregate supply as well as on the economy’s output and price level both in the short run and in the long run. It is also important to understand how an economy responds to a short-run shock and adjusts to long-run equilibrium in the absence of any public policy actions.

With both monetary and fiscal policies now incorporated in the analysis of aggregate demand and aggregate supply, an understanding of the interactions between the two is essential. Students should also examine the economic effects of government budget deficits, including crowding out; consider the issues involved in determining the burden of the national debt; and explore the relationships between deficits, interest rates, and inflation. The course should distinguish between the short-run and long-run impacts of monetary and fiscal policies and trace the short-run and long-run effects of supply shocks. Short-run and long-run Phillips curves are introduced to help students gain an understanding of the inflation-unemployment trade-off and how this trade-off may differ in the short and long run.

In this section, the course identifies the causes of inflation and illustrates them by using the aggregate demand and aggregate supply model. A well-rounded course also includes an examination of the significance of expectations, including inflationary expectations.