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Ram Dubey

Professor, Economics, Feliciano School of Business

Office:: School of Business 538
Email:: dubeyr@montclair.edu
Phone:: 973-655-7778
Degrees:: B.E., University of Roorkee; M.Tech., Indian Institute of Technology; M.A., Cornell University; Ph.D., Cornell University
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Ram is an Associate Professor at the Department of Economics in the Feliciano School Of Business at Montclair State University.
His research focuses on microeconomic theory and social choice and welfare.
His current research is on intergenerational equity and growth theory.

Specialization

Microeconomic Theory, Social Choice Theory, Intergenerational Equity, Economic Dynamics, Growth Theory

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Office Hours

Spring

Monday: 9:00 am - 10:00 am; On Zoom (access via link available on Canvas course section)
Tuesday: 9:00 am - 10:00 am; On Zoom (access via link available on Canvas course section)
Thursday: 9:00 am - 10:00 am; On Zoom (access via link available on Canvas course section)

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Documents

Research Projects

On Equitable Social Welfare Functions satisfying the Weak Pareto Axiom: A Complete Characterization joint with Tapan Mitra

The paper examines the problem of aggregating infinite utility streams with a social welfare function which respects the Anonymity and Weak Pareto Axioms.
It provides a complete characterization of domains (of the one period utilities) on which such an aggregation is possible.
A social welfare function satisfying the Anonymity and Weak Pareto Axioms exists on precisely those domains which do not contain
any set of the order type of the set of positive and negative integers.
The criterion is applied to decide on possibility and impossibility results for a variety of domains.
It is also used to provide an alternative formulation of the characterization result in terms of the accumulation points of the domain.

Keywords and Phrases: Anonymity Axiom, Weak Pareto Axiom, Social Welfare Function, Infinite Utility Streams, Domain Restrictions, Order Types, Accumulation Points.

Journal of Economic Literature Classification Numbers: D60, D70, D90.

Fleurbaey-Michel Conjecture on Equitable weak Paretian Social Welfare Order

The paper examines the problem of explicit description of a social welfare order over infinite utility streams, which respects Anonymity and weak Pareto Axioms.
It provides a complete characterization of the domains of one period utilities, for which it is possible to explicitly describe a weak Paretian social welfare order satisfying Anonymity axiom.
For domains containing any set of order type similar to the set of positive and negative integers, equitable Social Welfare Order satisfying weak Pareto axiom is non-constructive.
The paper resolves a conjecture by Fleurbaey and Michel (2003) that there exists no explicit (that is, avoiding the axiom of choice or similar contrivances) description of an ordering which satisfies weak Pareto and indifference to finite permutations.
It also provides an interesting connection between existence of social welfare function and constructive nature of social welfare order by showing that the domain restrictions for the two are identical.

Keywords: Anonymity, weak Pareto, Social Welfare Order, non-Ramsey Set, Order Type.

Journal of Economic Literature Classification Numbers : D60, D70, D90.

On the Nature of Suppes-Sen Maximal Paths in an Aggregative Growth Model with Tapan Mitra

This paper investigates the nature of paths in the standard neoclassical aggregative model of economic growth that are maximal according to the Suppes-Sen grading principle.
This is accomplished by relating such paths to paths which are utilitarian maximal when an increasing (but not necessarily concave) utility function evaluates each periodâ��s consumption.
Dynamic properties of Suppes-Sen maximal paths, which lie entirely above or entirely below the golden-rule, are analyzed.
An example is presented in which an explicit form of a consumption function is described, which generates only Suppes-Sen maximal paths.
This consumption function is shown to generate consumption cycles, and violate the Pigou-Dalton transfer principle.

Keywords and Phrases: Suppes-Sen Grading Principle, Utilitarian Maximality, Aggregative Growth Model, Golden Rule, Non-concave utility function, Consumption Cycle, Pigou-Dalton Transfer Principle.

Journal of Economic Literature Classification Numbers: D60, D70, D90.

Impatience Implications of Weakly Paretian Orders: Existence and Genericity with Kuntal Banerjee

We study order theoretic and topological implications for impatience of weakly Paretian, representable orders on infinite utility streams. As a departure from the traditional literature, we do not make any continuity assumptions in proving the existence of impatient
points.
Impatience is robust in the sense that there are uncountably many impatient points.
A general statement about genericity of impatience cannot be made for representable, weakly Paretian orders.
This is shown by means of an example. If we assume a stronger sensitivity condition, then genericity obtains.

Keywords: Impatience Condition, Weak Pareto, Sensitivity Conditions, Genericity, Order Types, Uncountable Sets.

Journal of Economic Literature Classification Numbers: D70, D90.

On Multi-Utility Representation of Equitable Intergenerational Preferences with Kuntal Banerjee

We investigate the possibility of representing ethical intergenerational preferences using more than one utility function.
It is shown that the impossibility of representing intergenerational preferences equitably persists in the multi-utility
frame work with some resonable restrictions on the cardinality of the set of utilities.

On Ramsey Equilibrium: Capital Ownership Pattern and Inefficiency with Robert A Becker and Tapan Mitra

We provide a sufficient condition on the production function under which eventually the most patient household owns the entire capital stock in every Ramsey Equilibrium, called the turnpike property.
This generalizes the result in the literature which establishes the turnpike property using the capital income monotonicity condition.
We then provide an example of a Ramsey Equilibrium in which the most patient household reaches a no capital position infinitely often.
This is a strong refutation of the turnpike property on Ramsey equilibria.
We also show that the constructed Ramsey equilibrium is inefficient in terms of the aggregate consumption stream that it provides.

Keywords: Cass Criteria, Efficiency, Maximal Income Monotonicity, Period Three Ramsey Equilibrium Cycle, Weak Turnpike Property, Approximate CES Function.

Journal of Economic Literature Classification Numbers: C61, D61, D90, O41.

Do all Constructive Strongly Monotone Intertemporal Orders exhibit Impatience? with Kuntal Banerjee

In this paper we show that if a strongly monotone intertemporal order exhibits no preference towards the advancement of timing of future utility on any inÂ�nite utility (payoÂ¤ or consumption) stream, then (i) the existence of such an order must involve non-constructive ways and (ii) the order cannot be represented by a real-valued function.

JEL Codes: D90

Keywords: Impatience, Axiom of Choice, Non-Ramsey Set

On Monotone Social Welfare Orders satisfying the Strong Equity Axiom: Construction and Representation with Tapan Mitra

This paper studies the nature of social welfare orders on infinite utility streams, satisfying the efficiency principle known as Monotonicity and the consequentialist equity principle known as Strong Equity.
It provides a complete characterization of domain sets for which there exists such a social welfare order which is in addition representable by a real valued function.
It then shows that for those domain sets for which there is no such social welfare order which is representable, the existence of such a social welfare order necessarily entails the existence of a non-Ramsey set, a non-constructive object.

Journal of Economic Literature Classification Numbers: D60, D70, D90.

Keywords and Phrases: Social Welfare Orders, Infinite Utility Streams, Monotonicity, Strong Equity, Representation, Construction, Non-Ramsey Set.

Fair Allocations in an Overlapping Generations Economy

The paper examines the nature of fair (envy free, efficient) allocations in an overlapping generations economy without production, in which each generation lives for two periods.
It shows that there exists a non-trivial conflict between equity and efficiency when all generations have identical preferences.
This conflict is seen to be entirely determined by the historically determined young age consumption of the generation which is old in the first period when the social decisions are being made, relative to the young age consumption in the golden-rule.
It then shows by an example that there could exist non-stationary preferences for which such a conflict does not arise regardless of the history of the economy.

Keywords: Overlapping Generations, Envy-Free, Efficiency, Fair Allocation.

Journal of Economic Literature Classification Numbers D61 , D63 , D91 .

On Representation and Construction of Equitable Social Welfare Orders on Infinite Utility Streams with Tapan Mitra

This paper studies the nature of social welfare orders on infinite utility streams, satisfying the consequentialist equity principles known as Hammond Equity and Pigou- Dalton transfer principle.
The first result shows that every social welfare order satisfying Hammond Equity and the Strong Pareto axioms is non-constructive in nature for all non-trivial domains, Y.
It also constitutes another instance of the correspondence principle.
The second result of this paper shows that, when the domain set Y = [0;1], the existence of a social welfare order satisfying Pigou-Dalton transfer principle necessarily entails the existence of a non-Ramsey set, a non-constructive object.
The latter result also provides an example of a social welfare order which can be represented, but which cannot be constructed.

Journal of Economic Literature Classification Numbers: D60, D70, D90.

Keywords and Phrases: Construction, Correspondence principle, Hammond Equity, Non-
Ramsey Set, Pigou-Dalton transfer principle, Representation, Social Welfare Orders.

Research

Corruption and the Role of Middlemen joint work with Jyoti Khanna
On Monotone Social Welfare Orders satisfying the Strong Equity Axiom: Construction and Representation joint work with Tapan Mitra
Representable Social Welfare Orders and the Set of Preferred Partitions joint work with Tapan Mitra

Honors & Awards

Anindya (Bappu) Majumder '98 Memorial Prize for Excellence in Teaching, Department of Economics, Cornell University ( 2009)

Refereed Published Articles

R. Dubey, T. Mitra (2011). On Equitable Social Welfare Functions satisfying the Weak Pareto Axiom: A Complete Characterization. International Journal of Economic Theory
R. Dubey, T. Mitra (2013). On the nature of Suppes-Sen maximal paths in an aggregative growth model. Social Choice and Welfare
R. Dubey (2011). Fleurbaey-Michel Conjecture on Equitable weak Paretian Social Welfare Order. Journal of Mathematical Economics
K. Banerjee, R. Dubey (2013). Impatience implication of weakly Paretian orders: Existence and genericity. Journal of Mathematical Economics
R. Dubey, F. Ruscitti (2015). A Remark on the Continuity of the Walras Correspondence in Pure Exchange Economies. Economic Theory Bulletin
V. Atal, R. Dubey (2014). Affirmative Action and Empowerment: Friends or Foes?. Economics Bulletin
R. Dubey, T. Mitra (2014). Combining monotonicity and strong equity: construction and representation of orders on infinite utility streams. Social Choice and Welfare
K. Banerjee, R. Dubey (2014). Do all constructive strongly monotone inter-temporal orders exhibit impatience?. Journal of Mathematical Economics
R. Dubey, T. Mitra (2014). On construction of equitable social welfare orders on infinite utility streams. Mathematical Social Sciences
R. Becker, R. Dubey, T. Mitra (2014). On Ramsey equilibrium: capital ownership pattern and inefficiency. Economic Theory
Alcantud, Jose Carlos R., R. Dubey (2014). Ordering infinite utility streams: Efficiency, continuity, and no impatience. Mathematical Social Sciences
R. Dubey, T. Mitra (2015). On Social Welfare Functions on Infinite Utility Streams Satisfying Hammond Equity and Weak Pareto Axioms: A Complete Characterization. Economic Theory Bulletin
K. Borissov, R. Dubey (2015). A characterization of Ramsey equilibrium in a model with limited borrowing. Journal of Mathematical Economics
R. Becker, K. Borissov, R. Dubey (2015). Ramsey equilibrium with liberal borrowing. Journal of Mathematical Economics
R. Dubey (2016). On construction of social welfare orders satisfying Hammond equity and Weak Pareto axioms. Mathematical Social Sciences
R. Dubey, M. Kang (2020). Industrial subsidy policy and the optimal level of specialization. Economic Modelling
R. Dubey, M. Kang (2019). Transfer Paradox in a Stable Equilibrium. Economic Theory Bulletin
R. Dubey (2016). A note on social welfare orders satisfying Pigou-Dalton transfer principle. Hitotsubashi Journal of Economics
F. Ruscitti, R. Dubey (2016). Monotone comparative statics in general equilibrium. Economics Bulletin
K. Borissov, R. Dubey (2020). Growth with many agents and wages paid ex ante. Economic Modelling
E. Berisha, R. Dubey, J. Meszaros, E. Olson (2020). Trends in Economic Inequality: Are US states growing apart?. Economics Bulletin
R. Dubey, G. Laguzzi, F. Ruscitti (2020). On the representation and construction of equitable social welfare orders. Mathematical Social Sciences
E. Berisha, R. Dubey, O. Gharehgozli (2022). Inflation and Income Inequality: Does the Level of Income Inequality Matter?. Applied Economics
R. Dubey, F. Ruscitti (2022). Fair Allocations in an Overlapping Generations Economy. Studies in Microeconomics
E. Berisha, R. Dubey, E. Olson (2022). Monetary Policy and the Racial Wage Gap. Empirical Economics
R. Dubey, G. Laguzzi (2021). Equitable Preference Relations on Infinite Utility Streams. Journal of Mathematical Economics
R. Dubey, G. Laguzzi (2021). Extended Gini index. Economics Bulletin
E. Berisha, R. Dubey, Z. Zamanian (2021). Recent dynamics in racial wage gap in the United States. Applied Economics Letters
R. Dubey, G. Laguzzi, F. Ruscitti (2021). On Social Welfare Orders Satisfying Anonymity and Asymptotic Density-One Pareto. Mathematical Social Sciences
D. Mohapatra, D. Mohapatra, R. Dubey (2023). Price Dispersion Across Online Platforms: Evidence From Hotel Room Prices in London (UK). Applied Economics
R. Dubey, G. Laguzzi (2023). Social welfare relations and irregular sets. Annals of Pure and Applied Logic
E. Berisha, R. Dubey, O. Gharehgozli (2023). Wage Inequality: The Role of Education. Economics and Business Letters
F. Ruscitti, R. Dubey, G. Laguzzi (2023). Decision-making under risk: when is utility maximization equivalent to risk minimization?. Theory and Decision

Books & Chapters

K. Banerjee, R. Dubey (2010). Multi-Utility Representation of Social Welfare Orders on Infinite Utility Streams. Econophysics & Economics of Games, Social Choices and Quantitative Techniques