@techreport{NBERw7161,
 title = "Central Bank Credibility:  Why Do We Care?  How Do We Build It?",
 author = "Alan S. Blinder",
 institution = "National Bureau of Economic Research",
 type = "Working Paper",
 series = "Working Paper Series",
 number = "7161",
 year = "1999",
 month = "June",
 URL = "http://www.nber.org/papers/w7161",
 abstract = {Central bank credibility plays a pivotal role in much of the modern literature on monetary policy, yet it is difficult to measure or even assess objectively.  A survey of central bankers was conducted to determine their attitudes on two important issues: why credibility matters, and how credibility can be built.  The central bankers' answers are compared with the responses of NBER-affiliated macro and monetary economists.  The two groups agree much more than they disagree. They are particularly united in their evaluations of ways to make a central bank credible -- assigning high ratings to the central bank's track record and low ratings to theoretical ideas like precommitment and incentive-compatible contracts.},
}