Rational Expectations School
The Rational Expectations School is a school of thought that influences the way economics are studied today. The school of thought is based on the idea of individual actions being taken in order to maximise their own welfare and based on an accurate knowledge and understanding of the environment they’re in. This idea of rational expectations has been a part of economics for quite some time and is most closely associated with the work of economist Robert Lucas and his models for economic dynamics.
The core concepts of the Rational Expectations School are related to the way individuals make decisions and how their expectations shape and affect those decisions. At the most basic level, the idea is that people make decisions based on what they believe the future will be. This applies to both their own future goals and the actions of their peers. The Rational Expectations School proposes that in order to correctly make decisions that reflect reality, one must understand their environment and the expectations of themselves and others.
The school of thought holds that if individuals don’t make decisions that accurately reflect their environment when making decisions, they will be prone to errors and inefficiencies. For instance, if an actor wrongly believes that the prices of a commodity will rise in the near future, they may take an action that is actually more costly than it should be. Those who use the Rational Expectations School believe that the only way to account for such fundamental assumptions is to look closely at the economic environment and make decisions on the basis of facts and beliefs about the future.
One of the main aspects of this school of thought is that it presumes that economic outcomes are determined not only by the present but also by expectation of the future. While it’s true that a portion of economic outcomes is based on economic choices in the present, it is also true that these choices are influenced by expectations about future outcomes. Thus, expectations cannot be dismissed simply as mere hopes or guesses, but should instead be regarded as valid information that can be used in decision making.
The Rational Expectations School also holds the belief that while individual decisions made in the present are based on expectations of future outcomes, the outcome itself is usually impossible to predict in advance. This means that while it is possible to form an expectation of what will happen in the future, it is not always possible to determine it accurately. Furthermore, this means that if an individual incorrectly guesses expectations, he or she may end up taking actions that are not beneficial in the long run. Such actions can lead to long-term losses that could have been avoided had more accurate expectations been held.
The Rational Expectations School makes several claims about how economic behaviour is affected by expectations of future events. It states that individuals must be aware of the environment they are making decisions in and of the expectations of the people around them. Furthermore, the school holds that expectations of future outcomes cannot be predicted accurately in advance, as they cannot be precisely determined. Finally, the school also holds that incorrect expectations can lead to long-term losses that could have been avoided if more accurate expectations were held. Rational Expectations make it possible for economists to model economic behaviour and its effects in a way that is more accurate than traditional economic models.