ABSTRACT

This chapter provides some conversations that took place in the fall of 1987, shortly after the stock market crash and little more than a year after the survey had been distributed. Because several students had not been part of the survey (and because memories for these matters tend to be short anyway), all participants were asked to complete a shortened version of the questionnaire before the discussion. The responses were not significantly different from those for Chicago in the original survey. Chicago is defined by a real commitment to certain kinds of methodological principles which one strictly adheres to. Our commitment to rational expectations as opposed to adaptive expectations arises from a belief that it would be more parsimonious to postulate. In the survey, students suggested that in order to be successful, problem-solving ability is very important and knowledge of the economy very unimportant. They understand the economy, but they are not going to be famous economists.