A key feature of the reaction function for Chairman Burns’s tenure (1970 to 1978) is the clear insignificance of the coefficient on the inflation gap. Instead, the funds rate responded only to the GDP gap. The lack of an implicit or explicit inflation target is consistent with the large increase in inflation during this period.
Of course, other factors may have played a role as well. In particular, there were two large oil shocks that added substantially to the price leve