The structuralist theory of inflation: elaboration and scope of an institution’s thought
Adriana Calcagno (CIRED)
Abstract
This paper shows that the structuralist theory of inflation was an original response developed by a group of ECLAC economists to the implementation of anti-inflationary policies backed by the IMF in the mid-1950s in Latin America. It also shows how this analysis of inflation and the corresponding policy recommendations were consistent with the general views on development of the UN Economic Commission for Latin America (ECLAC), and why the structuralist theory of inflation is a good example of an institutional thought. The paper also argues that this theory’s scope expanded beyond Latin America by studying the influence of and convergence with authors outside the
region like Michał Kalecki.