Corso di studio in Economia

Microeconomia è propedeutico per tutti i canali di questo modulo.

Prerequisiti canale A
Anche se non formalmente propedeutici, il docente considera come acquisite le conoscenze dei corsi di macroeconomia, econometria e storia economica.

Prerequisiti canale D
La docente considera come acquisite le conoscenze dei corsi di microeconomia e econometria.

Prerequisiti canale E
La docente considera come acquisite le conoscenze dei corsi di econometria.

Prerequisiti canale F
Il docente considera come acquisite le conoscenze dei corsi di microeconomia, ed econometria.

Pathway A: Modern Economic History (canale A)

• Critical understanding of complex economic phenomena in historical perspective
• Ability to use quantitative tools and data to analyse such pehnomena

Pathway B: Public policy analysis (canale B)

After a new policy is enacted, we often want to estimate what effects the policy had. This Lab provides students with an introductory knowledge for estimating the effects of new policies using appropriate empirical method (randomized assigned of the treatment, discontinuity design, difference-in-differences models, matching).

Pathway C: Labour market, health and well-being: economic analysis using panel data (canale C)

Longitudinal data allow observing changes in individuals’ circumstances over time and are commonly used in labour and health economics to investigate empirical problems.
This lab aims at introducing students to the use of longitudinal household surveys to investigate empirical research questions related to individuals’ and families’ health, well-being and labor market experiences.

Pathway D: Productivity and efficiency analysis of firms (canale D)

This lab aims at introducing issues of productivity and efficiency analysis of companies. Productivity is a key driver of economic growth. Understanding how it is computed and the main factors affecting is thus fundamental. This module tackles the main issues in the estimation of production functions from both a theoretical and empirical perspective, by also presenting empirical applications particularly from the labor market.

Pathway E: Economics of Spatial Data (canale E)

In this econometrics lab, students are introduced to the fundamentals of spatial data and its growing importance in modern economic analysis. Through hands-on exercises, they learn how geographic patterns, spatial relationships, and location-based datasets can deepen our understanding of economic behavior and policy outcomes. The lab highlights why spatial tools—once niche—are now essential for economists and practitioners working on issues such as regional development, urban planning, housing, environmental policy, and economic history.

Pathway F: Economic Analysis of Crime (canale F)

This lab introduces the economic analysis of crime. It starts by covering the main conceptual framework in which criminal actions derive from ration occupational choices of individuals, and then covers a range of different topics including cutting edge empirical applications.

Canale L - Econometric Modelling of Economic and Financial Time Series

This lab aims at providing students with some basic tools widely used in the applied econometric analysis of economic and financial data, building on concepts and techniques learned in the third-year Econometrics course. A user-friendly econometric software (EViews) will be employed in the class.

Canale M - Distribution and redistribution of income

This course provides an introduction to income and wealth inequality measurement.

Canale N - Answering Policy Questions: Overview of The Economist's Toolkit

This course shows how economic theory, combined with econometric methods, can help answer important policy questions. The goal is to build an integrated toolkit that links models of behavior and market interactions to credible empirical strategies and real-world evidence.

Pathway A: Modern Economic History (canale A)

• Knowledge and understanding: The students will learn about the functioning of financial markets, the role of public debt, long-term economic growth, and international trade
• Applying knowledge and understanding: The students will learn how to use It tools and data to address compelx questions and issues
• Making judgements: The students will have to express personal interpretations of econometric results as well as their meaning in realtion to the questions under investigation
• Communication skills: The teaching structure promotes students interaction by means of supervised, yet independently-run, class activities
• Learning skills: The students will learn how to commit to the full understanding of complex readings, and to operate IT tools, how to seacrh and intepreta data and econmetric results

Pathway B: Public policy analysis (canale B)

Course participants will learn how to manage datasets, estimate the policy impact and present the results. To achieve these results, students will be provided with data sets and will use them to evaluate policies.

Pathway C: Labour market, health and well-being: economic analysis using panel data (canale C)

Course participants will learn how to construct longitudinal datasets starting from cross sectional data and will use these datasets to investigate empirical questions using basic techniques from panel data econometrics.
Students will understand the main advantages of longitudinal data and the relevance of random and fixed effects methodologies, using examples from longitudinal household surveys.

Pathway D: Productivity and efficiency analysis of firms (canale D)

The student will learn the basics of productivity and efficiency analysis of firms. He/she will have knowledge of several methods to estimate production functions, and will have the opportunity to work with firm-level data sets. The student will also study multiple applications of empirical estimations of production functions to assess the impact of different economic factors on firm productivity.

Pathway E: Economics of Spatial Data (canale E)

The student will learn to: Understand what spatial data are and why they are increasingly important in economic research and applied policy analysis; Learn to manage, visualize, and manipulate spatial datasets using ArcGIS; Produce new spatial layers and construct detailed measures of spatial relationships within ArcGIS; Integrate spatial information and spatial variables into standard econometric frameworks; Conduct empirical analysis that incorporates spatial data and relationships using Stata.

Pathway F: Economic Analysis of Crime (canale F)

- Foster a corious thinking on how basic economic analysis could be applied to understand seemingly irrational social phenemena such as crime.

- Foster the ability to read applied papers (on the economic of crime and otherwise)

Canale L - Econometric Modelling of Economic and Financial Time Series

Students will learn how to deal with specific problems of economic and financial time series (e.g. persistence, structural breaks, long-term trends, endogeneity) and build empirical econometric models (e.g. autoregressions, distributed lag models, dynamic factor models).

Canale M - Distribution and redistribution of income

Students will learn how to measure income and wealth inequality.  After endowed with a complete theoretical background, students will apply their new knowledge on a compter software (STATA). Students are expected to learn how to program in STATA in order to compute the most important inequality indexes.  

Canale N - Answering Policy Questions: Overview of The Economist's Toolkit

By the end of the course, students will be able to:
- Use microeconomic theory to frame policy questions and derive testable predictions.
- Match empirical strategies to identification challenges.
- Interpret applied research and assess external validity.
- Communicate policy implications clearly and rigorously.

Pathway A: Modern Economic History (canale A)

• Introduction to quantitative economic history
• Sources and methodology
• Growth in the long run and its measurement
• Government borrowing up to WWI and panel data analysis
• Central banks operations and time series analysis
• Quantitative Africa History

Pathway B: Public policy analysis (canale B)

• Introduction to Stata: descriptive statistics, graphs and linear regression
• Introduction to impact evaluation
• Discontinuity design and health related-policies
• Difference in difference and minimum wage policies
• Matching methods applied to impact evaluation

Pathway C: Labour market, health and well-being: economic analysis using panel data (canale C)

• Cross section and panel data
• Advantages of longitudinal data
• How to construct longitudinal datasets
• Random effects models
• Fixed effects models
• Tests and diagnostics

Pathway D: Productivity and efficiency analysis of firms (canale D)

• Introduction to production functions.
• Total factor productivity and labor productivity.
• Estimation of firm-level production functions: theory and practice.
• Empirical applications.

Pathway E: Economics of Spatial Data (canale E)

• Introduction to Stata and regression analysis with Stata;
• Introduction to spatial data and GIS systems, first steps with ArcGIS/ArcMap;
• Spatial analysis and geoprocessing tools with ArcGIS;
• Integration of spatial data and econometric analysis using Stata and ArcMap;
• Development of an applied project with group work and final presentation

Pathway F: Economic Analysis of Crime (canale F)

Topics will include:

- The economic model of crime

- The opportunity cost of crime: jobs and education

- The effects of prison: Incapacitation, deterrence and resocialization

- Policing, deterrence and crime

- Organized crime

Canale L -Econometric Modelling of Economic and Financial Time Series

The course will cover several topics, including:

1) manipulation and presentation of economic and financial time series;

2) specification and estimation of autoregressive models for forecasting; use of probit regression models for prediction

3) estimation of dynamic causal effects with distributed lag and autoregressive distributed lag models

4) econometric modelling in the presence of simultaneous causality: instrumental variables, two-stage-least-squares techniques

Applied examples will deal with important macroeconomic and financial issues such as dating of economic recessions, forecasting movements in the term structure of interest rates, and the estimation of the aggregate consumption function.

Canale M - Distribution and redistribution of income

• Data and data manipulations
• Inequality of income
• Lorenz curve
• Lorenz curves and welfare comparison
• Gini index
• The income tax
• The redistributive effect of taxes
• The degree of progression of taxes

Canale N - Answering Policy Questions: Overview of The Economist's Toolkit

• The course combines theory and econometrics around canonical policy topics. These may include (but are not limited to):
  - Minimum wage policy: competitive vs. monopsonistic labor market models; Difference-in-Differences evidence.
  - Trade and globalization: comparative advantage, gains from trade, and redistribution; IV and shift-share approaches.
  - Externalities and public policy: efficiency, Pigouvian instruments, and empirical measurement.
  - Discrimination in labor markets: theory and evidence on wages, hiring, and firm behavior.
  - Choice under uncertainty: risk, insurance, and applications in health and finance.
  - Imperfect information: signaling, screening, and applications in labor and health economics.
• The exact list of topics covered will be adjusted as the course unfolds.

Pathway A: Modern Economic History (canale A)

The Lab consists of 24 hours of activity, with a mix of frontal lectures, in-class interaction and discussion, and independent (supervised) work

Pathway B: Public policy analysis (canale B)

The Lab consists of 24 hours of computer lessons, with interactions between teachers and students. 

Pathway C: Labour market, health and well-being: economic analysis using panel data (canale C)

The Lab consists of 24 hours of computer lessons, with interactions between teachers and students.

Pathway D: Productivity and efficiency analysis of firms (canale D)

The Lab consists of 24 hours of activity, with a mix of standard lectures, in-class interactions, and computer lectures.

Pathway E: Economics of Spatial Data (canale E)

The Lab consists of 24 hours, with a mix of standard lectures, in-class exercises, and a final group project.

Pathway F: Economic Ananlysis of Crime (canale F)

24 hours of lessons and group AI project

Canale L - Econometric Modelling of Economic and Financial Time Series

The course (24 class hours) will include lectures and classes with applied work on both real-life and simulated data sets.

Canale M - Distribution and redistribution of income

The course consists of 24 class hours. Students will be provided with lecture notes as well as scripts, codes and data. 

Canale N - Answering Policy Questions: Overview of The Economist's Toolkit

Assessment aims at rewarding class participation: students should engage in the combination of theoretical reasoning nad empirical questioning taught by example in this class. Students will therefore be asked to prepare presentations of a paper and present in the classroom.

Pathway A: Modern Economic History (canale A)

For students attending the classes (attendance is registered), the assessment is based on class activities (25%), an independent project (25%), and one-hour multiple-choice test (25 questions, 35 minutes), worth 50% of the final grade. Details about the multiple-choice test will be provided during the module

Students not attending the classes are assessed on a one hour exam, made of two open questions (worth 50% of the final grade each) based on the knowledge of the readings and the lectures content.

Pathway B: Public policy analysis (canale B)

Students attending the classes work in groups on in-class or at-home weekly assignments. The final exam consists in a presentation of an impact evaluation analysis. 

For students not attending the classes, final exam consists in a written exam

Pathway C: Labour market, health and well-being: economic analysis using panel data (canale C)

Class group presentation (35%) + Mini group research project (65%)

Students who cannot attend the class should contact Prof Mendolia to discuss exam's options.

Pathway D: Productivity and efficiency analysis of firms (canale D)

Assessment methods

• participation in group presentations of scientific papers during class sessions (40%)

• written exam with open-ended questions (60%)

Alternatively, students may opt for a final written exam covering the entire syllabus. In this case, the syllabus also includes two scientific papers, which will be communicated during the course.

Pathway E: Economics of Spatial Data (canale E)

Attendants: Attendance (20%), Group Project (40%) and Group Project Discussion (40%).

Non-attendants: Individual Project (60%) and Project Discussion (40%).

Pathway F: Economic Analysis of Crime  (canale F)

Relevant readings are indicated on the Moodle pages of the modules. Programming codes which will be used during the courses will also be available on Moodle.

Canale F - The Economic Analysis of crime

1. Becker, G. (1968). “Crime and Punishment: An Economic Approach,” Journal of Political Economy, 76(2): 169-217.

2. Buonanno, P., Vargas, J., Tobón, S. (2026). “Crime: Economics of, The Standard Approach,” In Encyclopedia of Law and Economics (pp. 1-3). Springer.

3. Buonanno, P., Vanin, P., Vargas J. (2022). “The changing nature of economics of crime,” in A Modern Guide to the Economics of Crime, 1-11.

4. Britto, D. G., Pinotti, P., Sampaio, B. (2022). “The effect of job loss and unemployment insurance on crime in Brazil.” Econometrica, 90(4), 1393-1423.

5. Cortés, D., Santamaría, J., Vargas, J. (2016). “Economic Shocks and Crime: Evidence from the Crash of Ponzi Schemes,” Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization Vol. 131: 263-275.

6. Dube, O., Vargas, J. (2013). “Commodity price shocks and civil conflict: Evidence from Colombia,” Review of Economic Studies.

7. Ferraz, E., Soares, R., Vargas, J. (2022). “Unbundling the Relationship between Economic Shocks and Crime,” in Buonanno, P., Paolo Vanin and Juan Vargas (Eds.) A Modern Guide to the Economics of Crime.

8. Sviatschi, M. (2022). “Making a NARCO: Childhood Exposure to Illegal Labor Markets and Criminal Life Paths,” Econometrica, Vol 90(4): 1835-1878.

9. Di Tella, R., Schargrodsky, E. (2013). “Criminal recidivism after prison and electronic monitoring,” Journal of Political Economy, 121(1), 28-73.

10. Drago, F., Galbiati, R. (2012). “Indirect effects of a policy altering criminal behavior: Evidence from the Italian prison experiment,” American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 4(2), 199-218.

11. Drago, F., Galbiati, R., Vertova, P. (2009). “The Deterrent Effects of Prison: Evidence from a Natural Experiment,” Journal of Political Economy, vol. 117(2).

12. Mastrobuoni, G., Terlizzese, D. (2022). “Leave the Door Open? Prison Conditions and Recidivism,” American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 14(4), 200-233.

13. Schargrodsky, E. and S. Tobón (2026). “From Schools of Crime to Criminal Hubs? Prisons and Organized Crime in Latin America and the Caribbean,” Organized Against Crime Policy Document No. 03.

14. Tobon, S. (2022). “Do better prisons reduce recidivism? Evidence from a prison construction program,” Review of Economics and Statistics, 104(6), 1256-1272.

15. Di Tella, R., Schargrodsky, E. (2004). “Do police reduce crime? Estimates using the allocation of police forces after a terrorist attack,” American Economic Review, 94(1), 115-133.

16. Draca, M., Machin, S., Witt, R. (2011). “Panic on the streets of London: Police, crime, and the July 2005 terror attacks,” American Economic Review, 101(5), 2157-81.

17. Mastrobuoni, G. (2020). “Crime is terribly revealing: information technology and police productivity,” The Review of Economic Studies, 87(6), 2727-2753.

18. Blattman, C., Green, D., Ortega, D., Tobon, S. (2021). “Place-based interventions at scale: The direct and spillover effects of policing and city services on crime,” Journal of the European Economic Association, 19(4), 2022-2051.

19. Weintraub, M. and J. Monteiro (2026). “Policing Organized Crime,” Organized Against Crime Policy Document No. 07.

20. Mejía, D. (2025). “Drugs and Anti-Drug Policies in Latin America: Successes, Failures, and Wrong Turns,” Organized Against Crime Policy Document No. 02.

21. Melendez, M., Peña, N., Schargrodky, E., Vargas, J. (2025). “The scope of organized crime in Latin America and the Caribbean,” Organized Against Crime Policy Document No. 01.

22. Murphy, T., Vanin, P. (2022). “Organized crime, state and the legitimate monopoly of violence,” in A Modern Guide to the Economics of Crime, Edward Elgar Publishing, pp. 374-394.

23. Vargas, J., Sviatschi, M. and Cabra-Ruiz, N. (2026). “The Complex Link between Migration and Organized Crime in Latin America and the Caribbean,” Organized Against Crime Policy Document No. 05.

Canale L - Econometric Modelling of Economic and Financial Time Series

An introduction to the topics of the course can be found in chapters 15-16-17 of J. Stock and M. Watson Introduction to Econometrics, 4th edition (Global edition), Pearson, 2020 (ISBN 13: 9781292264455).  Additional and more specific material (along with relevant data sets) will be provided during the course.

Canale M - Distribution and redistribution of income

All teaching materials will be provided to students at the beginning of the course. In addition to the slides for the theoretical part and a STATA do file for the computational part, the original readings related to the calculation of income and wealth inequality will be made available to students.

Canale N - Answering Policy Questions: Overview of The Economist's Toolkit