The Role of Overlapping-Generations Models in Monetary Economics / Bennett T. McCallum.

By:

McCallum, Bennett T

Contributor(s):

National Bureau of Economic Research

Material type: Text

TextSeries: Working Paper Series (National Bureau of Economic Research) ; no. w0989.Publication details: Cambridge, Mass. National Bureau of Economic Research 1982.Description: 1 online resource: illustrations (black and white)Subject(s):

E - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics

Online resources:

Available additional physical forms:

Hardcopy version available to institutional subscribers

Abstract: The main arguments of this paper can be summarized as follows. (1) The overlapping-generations (OG) structure provides a useful framework for the analysis of macroeconomic issues involving intertemporal allocation. (2) As a "model of money," the basic OG setup -- which excludes cash-in-advance or money-in-the-utility-function (MIUF) features -- is inadequate and misleading because it neglects the medium-of-exchange property that is the distinguishing characteristic of money. (3) That this neglect obtains is verified by noting that, in contrast with an axiomatic "traditional presumption," the same aggregate leisure/consumption bundles are available in equilibria in which "money" is valued and valueless. (4) That the model may be misleading is demonstrated by examples in which three of its most striking properties --tenuousness of monetary equilibrium, optimality of zero money growth, and price level invariance to open-market exchanges -- disappear in the presence of modifications designed to reflect the medium-of-exchange property. (5) There is no compelling reason why cash-in-advance, MIUF, or other appendages should not be used in conjunction with the OG framework.

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Item type	Home library	Collection	Call number	Status	Date due	Barcode	Item holds
Working Paper	Biblioteca Digital	Colección NBER	nber w0989 (Browse shelf(Opens below))	Not For Loan

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September 1982.

The main arguments of this paper can be summarized as follows. (1) The overlapping-generations (OG) structure provides a useful framework for the analysis of macroeconomic issues involving intertemporal allocation. (2) As a "model of money," the basic OG setup -- which excludes cash-in-advance or money-in-the-utility-function (MIUF) features -- is inadequate and misleading because it neglects the medium-of-exchange property that is the distinguishing characteristic of money. (3) That this neglect obtains is verified by noting that, in contrast with an axiomatic "traditional presumption," the same aggregate leisure/consumption bundles are available in equilibria in which "money" is valued and valueless. (4) That the model may be misleading is demonstrated by examples in which three of its most striking properties --tenuousness of monetary equilibrium, optimality of zero money growth, and price level invariance to open-market exchanges -- disappear in the presence of modifications designed to reflect the medium-of-exchange property. (5) There is no compelling reason why cash-in-advance, MIUF, or other appendages should not be used in conjunction with the OG framework.