What is it about?
The book examines bubbles in various settings -- financial, house, tech, gold and more -- and proposes a social theory frame that goes considerably mere economic analysis; and helps explain bubble formation, inflation and burst.
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Why is it important?
When social, political, psychological factors are brought into the explanatory framework for bubbles, we get a comprehensive picture of these phenomena... and thus the ability to develop meaningful policies to deal with bubble processes.
Perspectives
The Theory Building Research Programme (TBRP) at Aalborg University, Denmark is expanding the ideas in this book and looking at runaway sentiments in multiple settings, some related to bubbles and others not.
Dr Nikhilesh Dholakia
University of Rhode Island
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Toward a Metatheory of Economic Bubbles, January 2014, Springer Science + Business Media, DOI: 10.1057/9781137361790.
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Resources
Bubbles work continues at TBRP Aalborg
The work on bubbles, and related phenomena of behaviors shaped by runaway collective sentiments, is continuing under the TBRP umbrella at Aalborg University, Denmark. Nikhilesh Dholakia and Romeo V. Turcan and extending as well as deepening their theorizing efforts in this area.
PBS Frontline on Historical Bubbles
Profiles of five bubbles, from 17th to the 20th century.
Romeo V. Turcan - additional works
Romeo Turcan's publications have addressed hype processes (essential for bubble formation) in several interesting ways.
A Bubble-disbeliever turns into a Bubble-believer
Nobel-laureate Eugene Fama does not believe in economic and asset bubbles - markets are efficient and there is no room for irrational exuberance. Fama's doctoral student Cliff Asness started with this same view, but as a practicing fund manager, Asness has come to see the light. Asness now believes that markets do turn irrational and exuberant from time to time, and bubbles do form.
Yes, Virginia, there are Bubble processes...
Cliff Asness did his doctoral work under Eugene Fama, the efficient markets guru and the biggest skeptic about bubbles. Now, as a major funds manager, Asness has come to appreciate how financial markets really work, and has observed the processes that foment bubbles.
Dotcom Crash: Will 2015 be a replay of 2000?
The so-called “dotcom crash” of 2000, when technology and especially e-commerce company stock price valuations plunged in a precipitate fashion, continues to fascinate scholars, practitioners, investors, and market analysts.
Dotcom Crash: Historical Account
The so-called “dotcom crash” of 2000, when technology and especially e-commerce company stock price valuations plunged in a precipitate fashion, continues to fascinate scholars, practitioners, investors, and market analysts.
Nikhilesh Dholakia: Amazon Author Page
Link to books by Nikhilesh Dholakia. Also includes a biographical sketch.
Bubble Trouble: Shiller & Fama, Nobel laureates debate on NPR
Shiller is probably the most famous analyst of bubbles; Fama is probably the most famous skeptic of bubbles. Enjoy the debate.
New Tech Bubble?
This athlete-entrepreneur sees a very dangerous Tech Bubble in 2015, worse than the Dotcom Bubble of 2000... but many other analysts find 2015 and 2000 situations to be completely different.
Bubbles of the Past: Tulipmania
The infamous tulipmania bubble... speculating on flower bulbs still in the ground.
Bubbles of the Past: Tulipmania [The Rationalist, Conservative view]
Yeah... there was no madness or mania [wink, wink]... merely the expected working of the speculative side of an informed market...!!
Bubbles of the Past: Tulipmania [some data here]
This piece is interesting in that it provides some charts and cost data.
Bubbles of the Past: South Sea Bubble [HBS Baker Library]
Short history... enough to whet your appetite for further exploration of this notorious bubble.
Bubbles of the Present: Rich portal into housing bubbles, worldwide
Links to many reports, data, charts.
Bubbles of the Past: South Sea Bubble [Jesse Colombo of Forbes]
Good account, descriptive but also with some data and additional facts that are not readily available in other accounts.
Bubbles of the Past: South Sea Bubble [Encylopedia Britannica]
Short piece... covers just the basics.
Bubbles of the Past: South Sea Bubble ['Historic UK' website]
Since this is a travel-related site, the account here is anecdotally more interesting than at other similar sites.
Bubbles of the Present: Dotcom crash survivors
The 2000 dotcom bubble crash wiped out $5 to $7 trillion worth of market capital... but it also left some survivors, which includes Apple, the most valued stock in the world.
Runaway Sentiments: CNN Money Fear and Greed Index
As a follow-on activity to the bubbles book, Nikhilesh Dholakia and Romeo V. Turcan are working on the more general theme of "runaway sentiments". Here is a resource relevant to such follow-on work. It may prove useful to other researchers who want to explore the sentiments behind bubbles.
Runaway Sentiments: Five technical indicators of stock market sentiments
As a follow-on activity to the bubbles book, Nikhilesh Dholakia and Romeo V. Turcan are working on the more general theme of "runaway sentiments". Here is a resource relevant to such follow-on work. It may prove useful to other researchers who want to explore the sentiments behind bubbles.
Runaway Sentiments: Sentiment indicator based on investory surveys
As a follow-on activity to the bubbles book, Nikhilesh Dholakia and Romeo V. Turcan are working on the more general theme of "runaway sentiments". Here is a resource relevant to such follow-on work. It may prove useful to other researchers who want to explore the sentiments behind bubbles.
Runaway Sentiments: Sentiment indexes for currencies
As a follow-on activity to the bubbles book, Nikhilesh Dholakia and Romeo V. Turcan are working on the more general theme of "runaway sentiments". Here is a resource relevant to such follow-on work. It may prove useful to other researchers who want to explore the sentiments behind bubbles.
Runaway Sentiments: Well, not so fickle and runaway - Consumer Sentiments (U-Michigan)
As a follow-on activity to the bubbles book, Nikhilesh Dholakia and Romeo V. Turcan are working on the more general theme of "runaway sentiments". Here is a resource relevant to such follow-on work. It may prove useful to other researchers who want to explore the sentiments behind bubbles.
Feranando Rugitsky: Exploring financialization, housing bubbles and the Great Recession
Useful reading for all interested in the Great Recession and its associated Housing Bubble.
Euphoria circa 2001: A paper worth revisiting
Predating the Great Recession and Housing Bubble, this paper looks at the bubble processes, euphoria, and runaway sentiments of the waning years of 20th century.
Bubbles, Runaway Sentiments: How do you build good theories?
This special doctoral course at TBRP, University of Denmark (the program that provided partial support for the Nikhilesh Dholakia and Romeo Turcan work on bubbles) will help those wanting to learn about good theory building strategies and tools.
Bond-driven Crash? Professor Shiller equivocates
Nobel laureate Robert Shiller is not quite sure... but ... is... umm... reasonably confident... well... sort of... that the next crash (stocks, housing prices) may not ... umm... yeah.. may not...be driven by the bond market.
Eugene Fama: Ain't no such thing as "bubbles"
Nobel laureate Eugene Fama believes that markets are informationally efficient and bubbles don't -- indeed they CANNOT -- exist...!!
Bubble Trouble: Shanghai stock exchange in April 2015
Massive speculative stock bets, with borrowed cash.
Bubble Trouble: USA in April 2015
Alarm bells ringing in USA about overvalued stocks - inflating bubble?
Book link at TBRP Denmark FB page
TBRP at Aalborg University is continuing research efforts in areas related to this book.
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