PubPol 750.004 Topics: Lessons from the Japanese Economy

This course will provide an overview of recent Japanese economic history and the current state of the Japanese economy. We will consider what economic policymakers around the world can learn from Japan. In particular, we will examine Japan's monetary policy response to two decades of slow economic growth (so-called Abenomics), the economic implications of Japan's declining population, and the consequences of Japan's large government debt. Students will write a short paper exploring an aspect of the Japanese economy and / or a lesson that Japanese economic policy may have for the rest of the world.

Faculty Expert

Joshua Hausman

Associate Professor of Public Policy; Associate Professor of Economics (by courtesy)

Hausman’s research interests are in economic history and macroeconomics with a focus on the U.S. economy in the 1930s and the Japanese economy today. He is a faculty research fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research.