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'Big data' is now readily available to economic historians, thanks to the digitisation of primary sources, collaborative research linking different data sets, and the publication of databases on the internet. Key economic indicators, such as the consumer price index, can be tracked over long periods, and qualitative information, such as land use, can be converted to a quantitative form. In order to fully exploit these innovations it is necessary to use sophisticated statistical techniques to reveal the patterns hidden in datasets, and this book shows how this can be done.
A distinguished group of economic historians have teamed up with younger researchers to pilot the application of new techniques to 'big data'. Topics addressed in this volume include prices and the standard of living, money supply, credit markets, land values and land use, transport, technological innovation, and business networks. The research spans the medieval, early modern and modern periods. Research methods include simultaneous equation systems, stochastic trends and discrete choice modelling.
This book is essential reading for doctoral and post-doctoral researchers in business, economic and social history. The case studies will also appeal to historical geographers and applied econometricians.
List of contents
1. Introduction: Research methods for large databases
Mark Casson and Nigar Hashimzade 2. Long-run Price Dynamics: The measurement of substitutability between commodities
Mark Casson, Nigar Hashimzade and Catherine Casson 3. The Quantity Theory of Money in Historical Perspective
Nick Mayhew 4. Medieval Foreign Exchange: A time series analysis
Adrian Bell, Chris Brooks and Tony K. Moore 5. Local Property Values in Fourteenth and Fifteenth-century England
Margaret Yates, Anna Campbell and Mark Casson 6. Visual Analytics for Large-scale Actor Networks, with an Application to Liverpool Business Networks
John Haggerty and Sheryllynne Haggerty 7. Railways and Local Population Growth: Northamptonshire and Rutland, 1801-91
Mark Casson, Leigh Shaw-Taylor, A.E.M. Satchell and E.A. Wrigley 8. Women's Land Ownership in Nineteenth-century England
Janet Casson 9. The Diffusion of Steam Technology in England: Ploughing engines, 1860-1930
Jane McCutchan 10. Industrious Burglars: Funding consumption from property crime
Jane Humphries, Sara Horrell and Ken Sneath
About the author
Mark Casson is Professor of Economics at the University of Reading, UK. His research focuses on economic history, business history and econometrics.
Nigar Hashimzade is Professor of Economics at the University of Durham, UK. Her research focuses on time series econometrics and public economics.
Summary
‘Big data’ is now readily available to economic historians. This new volume shows how sophisticated statistical techniques can be used to identify the hidden patterns within these large datasets. Topics addressed in this volume include prices and the standard of living, money supply, credit markets, land values and land use, transport, technological innovation, and business networks.
Additional text
'This book makes applied econometric methods accessible to anyone interested in quantitative economic history' — Helen Paul, University of Southampton, UK.
