A lucid introduction to the costs of unemployment and inflation, this book analyses the ways in which these two issues profoundly influence the conduct of economic policy. Based on economic events and policies in the UK and US, Inflation and Unemployment argues controversially against the New Right claim that inflation causes unemployment. The effects of unemployment on the financial, mental and psychological well being of unemployed people are investigated and the impact of inflation on the distribution of income and wealth is assessed. In conclusion Graham Dawson suggests that recent macroeconomic policy in the UK and US has tended to overstate the dangers of inflation and understate the unemployment costs of disinflation.

Written in a lively and accessible style, this book provides a new understanding of key features of the modern economy.<