IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/cop/wpaper/g-125.html

When Modellers Behave Like Lawyers: Have we Lost The Plot?

Author

Listed:
  • Alan A. Powell

Abstract

Australia has made outstanding contributions to the use of quantitative economic models in public policy discussions. That leading role is now threatened by the increasing use of econometric modellers in an advocacy, lawyer-like role, rather than as impartial sources of the best available technical advice. This development became inevitable once it became fashionable in Canberra during the mid 1980s to deny the existence of public goods and to force the funding of economic intelligence garnering increasingly into the private sector. This paper argues that we are all the losers.

Suggested Citation

  • Alan A. Powell, 1998. "When Modellers Behave Like Lawyers: Have we Lost The Plot?," Centre of Policy Studies/IMPACT Centre Working Papers g-125, Victoria University, Centre of Policy Studies/IMPACT Centre.
    • Handle: RePEc:cop:wpaper:g-125
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.copsmodels.com/ftp/workpapr/g-125.pdf
    File Function: Initial version, 1998-01
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.copsmodels.com/elecpapr/g-125.htm
    File Function: Local abstract: may link to additional material.
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Powell, Alan A. & Snape, Richard H., 1993. "The contribution of applied general equilibrium analysis to policy reform in Australia," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 15(4), pages 393-414, August.
    2. Adams, Philip D. & Dixon, Peter B. & McDonald, Daina & Meagher, G. A. & Parmenter, Brian R., 1994. "Forecasts for the Australian economy using the MONASH model," International Journal of Forecasting, Elsevier, vol. 10(4), pages 557-571, December.
    3. Harrison, W Jill & Pearson, K R, 1996. "Computing Solutions for Large General Equilibrium Models Using GEMPACK," Computational Economics, Springer;Society for Computational Economics, vol. 9(2), pages 83-127, May.
    4. repec:bla:ecorec:v:69:y:1993:i:205:p:113-30 is not listed on IDEAS
    5. Hertel, Thomas, 1997. "Global Trade Analysis: Modeling and applications," GTAP Books, Center for Global Trade Analysis, Department of Agricultural Economics, Purdue University, number 7685, December.
    6. repec:bla:econom:v:60:y:1993:i:238:p:225-37 is not listed on IDEAS
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Esmedekh Lkhanaajav, 2016. "CoPS-style CGE modelling and analysis," Centre of Policy Studies/IMPACT Centre Working Papers g-264, Victoria University, Centre of Policy Studies/IMPACT Centre.
    2. Ianchovichina, Elena, 2004. "Trade policy analysis in the presence of duty drawbacks," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 26(3), pages 353-371, April.
    3. Xiao-guang Zhang & George Verikios, 2006. "Providing Duty-Free Access to Australian Markets for Least-Developed COuntries: a General Equilibrium Analysis," Economics Discussion / Working Papers 06-09, The University of Western Australia, Department of Economics.
    4. Anderson, Kym & Jackson, Lee Ann, 2004. "GM food technology abroad and its implications for Australia and New Zealand," 2004 Conference (48th), February 11-13, 2004, Melbourne, Australia 58365, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society.
    5. Ahmed, Vaqar & O' Donoghue, Cathal, 2007. "CGE-Microsimulation Modelling: A Survey," MPRA Paper 9307, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. Fan Zhai, 2008. "Armington Meets Melitz: Introducing Firm Heterogeneity in a Global CGE Model of Trade," Journal of Economic Integration, Center for Economic Integration, Sejong University, vol. 23, pages 575-604.
    7. Kym Anderson, 2020. "Trade Protectionism In Australia: Its Growth And Dismantling," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 34(5), pages 1044-1067, December.
    8. Philip D. Adams & Peter B.Dixon, 1996. "Reaching the planners: Generating detailed commodity Forecasts from a computable general equilibrium model," Centre of Policy Studies/IMPACT Centre Working Papers op-83, Victoria University, Centre of Policy Studies/IMPACT Centre.
    9. Anderson, Kym, 2004. "Setting the Trade Policy Agenda: What Roles for Economists?," Working Papers 14574, International Agricultural Trade Research Consortium.
    10. Anderson, Kym & Huang, Jikun & Ianchovichina, Elena, 2004. "Will China's WTO accession worsen farm household incomes?," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 15(4), pages 443-456.
    11. Haddad, Eduardo A. & Domingues, Edson P. & Perobelli, Fernando S., 2002. "Regional effects of economic integration: the case of Brazil," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 24(5), pages 453-482, August.
    12. Hertel, Thomas, 2013. "Global Applied General Equilibrium Analysis Using the Global Trade Analysis Project Framework," Handbook of Computable General Equilibrium Modeling, in: Peter B. Dixon & Dale Jorgenson (ed.), Handbook of Computable General Equilibrium Modeling, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 0, pages 815-876, Elsevier.
    13. Piermartini, Roberta & Teh, Robert, 2005. "Demystifying modelling methods for trade policy," WTO Discussion Papers 10, World Trade Organization (WTO), Economic Research and Statistics Division.
    14. Kym Anderson, 2003. "Measuring Effects of Trade Policy Distortions: How Far Have We Come?," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(4), pages 413-440, April.
    15. Anderson, Kym & Martin, Will & van der Mensbrugghe, Dominique, 2013. "Estimating Effects of Price-Distorting Policies Using Alternative Distortions Databases," Handbook of Computable General Equilibrium Modeling, in: Peter B. Dixon & Dale Jorgenson (ed.), Handbook of Computable General Equilibrium Modeling, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 0, pages 877-931, Elsevier.
    16. Peter B. Dixon & Maureen T. Rimmer, 2003. "The US economy from 1992 to 1998: historical and decomposition simulations with the USAGE model," Centre of Policy Studies/IMPACT Centre Working Papers g-143, Victoria University, Centre of Policy Studies/IMPACT Centre.
    17. Anna Strutt & Kym Anderson, 2000. "Will Trade Liberalization Harm the Environment? The Case of Indonesia to 2020," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 17(3), pages 203-232, November.
    18. George Verikios & Xiao-guang Zhang, 2001. "Global Gains from Liberalising Trade in Telecommunications and Financial Services," Others 0110005, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    19. James A Giesecke & John R Madden, 2006. "Uncovering the Factors behind Comparative Regional Economic Performance: A Dynamic CGE Approach," Centre of Policy Studies/IMPACT Centre Working Papers g-165, Victoria University, Centre of Policy Studies/IMPACT Centre.
    20. Edson Domingues & Eduardo Haddad & Fernando Perobelli, 2001. "Short-run Regional Effects of Alternative Strategies for Economic Integration: The Case of Brazil," ERSA conference papers ersa01p210, European Regional Science Association.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D58 - Microeconomics - - General Equilibrium and Disequilibrium - - - Computable and Other Applied General Equilibrium Models
    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:cop:wpaper:g-125. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Mark Horridge (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/cpmonau.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.