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Numerical Simulation of Economic Depression

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  • Harashima, Taiji

Abstract

In this paper, I numerically simulate the path of economy in an economic depression. It is not easy to perform a numerical simulation of the path to a steady state if households are assumed to behave by generating rational expectations. It is much easier, however, if households are assumed to behave according to a procedure based on the maximum degree of comfortability (MDC), where MDC indicates the state at which a household feels most comfortable with its combination of income and assets. The results of simulations under the supposition of this alternative procedure indicate that, if households do not strategically consider other households’ behaviors, consumption jumps upwards immediately after the shock. However, if households strategically select a Pareto inefficient path, large amounts of unutilized economic resources are generated, and the unemployment rate can rise to 30% or higher. These results seem to well match actual historical experiences during severe recessions such as the Great Depression and Great Recession.

Suggested Citation

  • Harashima, Taiji, 2024. "Numerical Simulation of Economic Depression," MPRA Paper 120508, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:120508
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Veronica Guerrieri & Guido Lorenzoni, 2017. "Credit Crises, Precautionary Savings, and the Liquidity Trap," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 132(3), pages 1427-1467.
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    3. Gauti B. Eggertsson & Paul Krugman, 2012. "Debt, Deleveraging, and the Liquidity Trap: A Fisher-Minsky-Koo Approach," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 127(3), pages 1469-1513.
    4. Robert A. Becker, 1980. "On the Long-Run Steady State in a Simple Dynamic Model of Equilibrium with Heterogeneous Households," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 95(2), pages 375-382.
    5. Harashima, Taiji, 2010. "Sustainable Heterogeneity: Inequality, Growth, and Social Welfare in a Heterogeneous Population," MPRA Paper 22521, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. John G. Fernald & Robert E. Hall & James H. Stock & Mark W. Watson, 2017. "The Disappointing Recovery of Output after 2009," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 48(1 (Spring), pages 1-81.
    7. Lawrance, Emily C, 1991. "Poverty and the Rate of Time Preference: Evidence from Panel Data," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 99(1), pages 54-77, February.
    8. Harashima, Taiji, 2021. "Consequence of Heterogeneous Economic Rents under the MDC-based Procedure," MPRA Paper 105765, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    9. Harashima, Taiji, 2009. "Depression as a Nash Equilibrium Consisting of Strategies of Choosing a Pareto Inefficient Transition Path," MPRA Paper 18953, University Library of Munich, Germany.
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    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Economic depression; Shock; Simulation; Recession; Unemployment; Unutilized economic resources;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E10 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - General Aggregative Models - - - General
    • E17 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - General Aggregative Models - - - Forecasting and Simulation: Models and Applications
    • E27 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Forecasting and Simulation: Models and Applications
    • E32 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Business Fluctuations; Cycles
    • E37 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Forecasting and Simulation: Models and Applications

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