Bernanke made his name as an economist by analyzing the worldwide Great Depression of the 1930’s – good expertise to have, since preventing such disasters is a central bank head’s most important job. The Great Depression, which followed the stock market crash of 1929, saw unemployment rise sharply in many countries, accompanied by severe deflation.
作为一位经济学家，分析20世纪30年代的全球大萧条曾使贝南克声誉雀起¾拥有这样的专长对他的工作十分有益，因为防止这样的灾难再次发生是央行首脑最重要的工作。经济大萧条紧紧伴随着1929年的股市崩溃，导致很多国家的失业率迅速飙升，同时发生的还有严重的通货紧缩。在美国，消费价格在1929到1933年间下降了27%，而在1933年失业率却史无前例地达到了23%。