Mathematical Case Studies for Economists
These worksheets are downloadable in Word format with embedded links, for you to adapt, print and/or put in a virtual learning environment.
Overview of the project (PDF), including learning objectives of each case study.
Household Finances
- Spending on plastic: the potential for financial distress (doc) (pdf)
Topics: geometric series, monthly versus annual interest, consumer credit - Saving for the Future: Don't leave it too late! (doc) (pdf)
Topics: compounding, the exponential constant, definite integration - Affording the Mortgage (doc) (pdf)
Topics: geometric progression, continuous compounding, exponential constant, definite integration
Consumer Spending
- Does income constrain household spending? (doc) (pdf)
Topics: compound interest, straight lines, differentiation, power law, APC and MPC - Do households smooth their consumption? (doc) (pdf)
Topics: logarithms, compound growth rate, consumption smoothing
UK Economy
- Deriving constant price estimates of GDP: An illustration of chain-linking (doc) (pdf)
Topics: chain-linking, price relative, real values - UK house prices: Going through the roof? (doc) (pdf)
Topics: compound interest, logarithms, nominal versus real inflation - Economic Growth: What Factors Matter? (doc) (pdf)
Topics: Compound growth, logarithms, percentages, nominal and real values, long-run and short-run growth rates
Social Issues
- Estimating a demand curve for un-priced environmental goods (doc) (pdf)
Topics: ratios, linear equations, definite integrals, consumer surplus - Counting the cost of effective health policy (doc) (pdf)
Topics: probability and expectation, sensitivity analysis, marginal cost - Measuring health improvements for a cost effectiveness analysis (doc) (pdf)
Topics: index numbers, discounted present value, probability, time trade-off - Measuring inequality: Using the Lorenz Curve and Gini Coefficient (doc) (pdf)
Topics: percentages, cumulative percentages, summary statistic, time series, cross sectional
Gambling, Competition and Sport
- Measuring the competitiveness of sport: are the top teams getting too strong? (doc) (pdf)
Topics: concentration index, sigma notation - Is the Scottish Premier League less competitive than its English Counterpart? (doc) (pdf)
Topics: Hirschman-Herfindahl Index, sigma notation - Probability in action: Gambling, the US Presidency and the market for car insurance (doc) (pdf)
Topics: Betting odds and probabilities, conditional probability, fractions and percentages
Authors: Dean Garratt, Andrew Cooke, Stephen Heasell, Philip Quinn and Leighton Vaughan Williams, Nottingham Trent University
A booklet giving guideline answers for the task questions is available on request from the Economics Network. This document is only available to teaching staff.
Development of these resources was made possible by a grant from the JISC/Higher Education Academy's Distributed eLearning programme.
See also the Microeconomic Case Studies produced by an Economics Network mini-project. Our Maths Resource Index lists more pick-and-mix learning materials.
