The course aims at studying the reasons and the instruments of government intervention in the economy. The drawbacks related to this government intervention will be underlined by analyzing (i) the main public spending programs which characterize the Italian economic system; (ii) the way in which government actually operates when it makes decisions about the economy; (iii) the role of the fiscal policy; and (iv) the public debt. At the end of the course, students will be able to answer questions such as: when should the government intervene in the economy?; how might the government intervene?; what is the effect of those interventions on economic outcomes?; why do governments choose to intervene in the way they do?
Course Prerequisites
Basic concepts of micro and macroeconomics on which the course will however get back.
Teaching Methods
Lectures with also exam simulations and (possible) seminars on specific topics. Teaching will combine slides' projection and the use of the board. Students are invited to attend the lectures. A tutoring program will be held during the semester of the course and the exam period.
Assessment Methods
Written exam that students can integrate with an oral exam. Students will have to answer multiple choice and open-ended questions related to the different issues of the course content. Students could also be asked to draw graphs on specific market failures and comment on Italian and European public finance statistics.
Texts
- Issues 1, 2 and 3 of the course content: Gruber, J., Scienza delle finanze, Egea, second edition 2023, ch. 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, A1; - Issue 4 of the course content: Materiale didattico per Scienza delle finanze (notes for students), Pavia, Clu, ed. 2025-2026. The slides of the lectures and the detailed course content will be available at https://elearning.unipv.it/.
Contents
The course content focuses on the following issues: 1) The theory of government intervention in the economy. 2) The main public spending programs. 3) Fundamentals of Political Economy. 4) Fiscal policy and public debt.
Course Language
Italian
More information
The ways to help specific students prepare for the exam will be the following ones: online and flexible office hours; specific tutorship.
