This book discusses mathematical models for various applications in economics, with a focus on non-linear dynamics. Based on the author’s over 50 years of active work in the field, the book has been inspired by models from the period between 1920 and 1950. Following a brief introduction to economics for mathematicians and other modelers, it assembles a repository of useful specific functions for global dynamic modeling. Furthermore, twelve “research stubs” – outlined research agendas that have not yet been fully worked on – are suggested for further study and could even be expanded to entire research projects. The book is a valuable resource, particularly for young scientists who are skilled in mathematical and computational techniques and are looking for applications in economics.

The most common mode of analysis in economic theory is to assume equilibrium. Yet, without a proper theory of how economies behave in disequilibrium, there is no foundation for such a practice. The necessary step in proposing a foundation is the formulation of a theory of stability, and in this 1984 book, Professor Fisher is primarily concerned with this subject, although disequilibrium behavior itself is analyzed. The author first undertakes a review of the existing literature on the stability of general equilibrium. He then proposes a more satisfactory general model in which agents realize their state of disequilibrium and act on arbitrage opportunities. The interrelated topics of the role of money, the nature of quantity constraints, and the optimal behaviour of arbitraging agents are extensively treated.

For decades, sports economics has been set within the framework of equilibrium economics, in particular when modelling team sport leagues. Based on a conviction that this does not reflect real life, this book addresses a gap in the literature and opens up a new research area by applying concepts drawn from disequilibrium economics. It is divided into two parts, the first of which focuses on economic disequilibrium in sports markets and competitive imbalance in sporting contests. The second part concentrates on soft budget constraints and their consequences for club governance and management.

Since the 1950s, macroeconomics has been transformed. This book is about one of the most important aspects of that transformation: the attempt, through the end of the twenty-first century and beyond, to construct macroeconomic models rigorously derived from models of individual firms and households.

The centrally planned economies (CPEs) of the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe have experienced severe imbalances in domestic and external markets over the past several decades. As a result, they have been chronically afflicted by problems such as excess demand, repressed inflation, deficits of commodities, queues, waiting lists, and forced savings. Economists have responded to these phenomena by developing appropriate theoretical and empirical models of CPEs. Of particular note have been the pioneering studies of Richard Portes on disequilibrium econometric models and Janos Kornai on the shortage economy. Each approach has attracted followers who have produced numerous, innovative macro- and microeconomic models of Poland, Czechoslovakia, the German Democratic Republic, Hungary, and the USSR. These models have proved to be of considerable value in the analysis of the causes, consequences and remedies of disequilibrium phenomena. Inevitably, the new research has also generated controversies both between and within the schools of shortage and disequilibrium modelling, concerning the fundamental nature of the socialist economy, theoretical concepts and definitions, the specification of models, estimation techniques, interpretation of empirical findings, and policy recommend ations. Furthermore, the research effort has been energetic but incomplete, so many gaps exist in the field.

This book starts from the proposition that frameworks used in business strategy lack realism because they are built on equilibrium-based foundations carried over from the domain of neoclassical economics. Mathews proposes instead a conceptual framework consistent with the turbulence found in real economies, and brings strategizing into conformity with such phenomena as innovation and technological change, network formation, capture of substitution effects in modular systems, and many other interesting features of modern economies that are passed over by mainstream equilibrium-based analysis. This new framework is based on the way firms assemble resources into a distinctive bundle, then build activities out of these resources to generate revenue, and link the resources to the activities through routines created and administered by management.

The international monetary system, and the disparate systems that make it up, are complex and there are many fallacies surrounding the ways in which they work. This book provides a clear and rigorous understanding of these systems and their possible consequences.