Monetary Policy Misspecification in VAR Models

We examine the effects of extracting monetary policy disturbances with semi-structural and structural VARs, using data generated by a limited participation model under partial accommodative and feedback rules. We find that, in general, misspecification is substantial: short run coefficients often have wrong signs; impulse responses and variance decompositions give misleading representations of the dynamics. Explanations for the results and suggestions for macroeconomic practice are provided.