chapter 02chapter 02chapter 02
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Chapter 02Chapter 02TRANSCRIPT
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Thinking Like an Economist
Chapter 2
Copyright © 2001 by Harcourt, Inc.
All rights reserved. Requests for permission to make copies of any part of the
work should be mailed to:
Permissions Department, Harcourt College Publishers,6277 Sea Harbor Drive, Orlando, Florida 32887-6777.
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Every field of study has its own terminology
Mathematics
axiomsintegrals
vector spacesPsychology
egoid
cognitive dissonanceLaw
torts
venues
Promissory estoppel
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Every field of study has its own terminology
Economics
Supply
Demand
Elasticity
Consumer SurplusComparative
advantage
Opportunity cost
Deadweight loss
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Economics trains you to. . . .
Think in terms of alternatives. Evaluate the cost of individual and
social choices. Examine and understand how certain
events and issues are related.
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The Economist as a Scientist
The economic way of thinking . . . Involves thinking analytically and
objectively. Makes use of the scientific method.
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The Scientific Method
Uses abstract models to help explain how a complex, real world operates.
Develops theories, collects, and analyzes data to prove the theories.
Observation, Theory and More Observation!
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The Role of Assumptions
Economists make assumptions in order to make the world easier to understand. The art in scientific thinking is deciding which assumptions to make. Economists use different assumptions to answer different questions.
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The Economic Way of Thinking
Includes developing abstract models from theories and the analysis of the models.
Uses two approaches: Descriptive (reporting facts, etc.) Analytical (abstract reasoning)
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Economic Models Economists use models to simplify reality in order to improve our understanding of the world Two of the most basic economic models include:
The Circular Flow Model The Production Possibilities Frontier
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The Circular-Flow Model
The circular-flow model is a simple way to visually show the
economic transactions that occur between households and firms in
the economy.
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The Circular-Flow Diagram
Firms Households
Market for Factors
of Production
Market for Goods
and Services
SpendingRevenue
Wages, rent, and
profit
Income
Goods & Services
sold
Goods & Services bought
Labor, land, and capital
Inputs for production
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The Circular-Flow Diagram
Households Buy and consume goods and services Own and sell factors of production
Firms Produce and sell goods and services Hire and use factors of production
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The Circular-Flow Diagram
Markets for Factors of Production Households sell Firms buy
Markets for Goods & Services Firms sell Households buy
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The Circular-Flow Diagram
Factors of Production Inputs used to produce goods and
services Land, labor, and capital
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The Production Possibilities Frontier
The production possibilities frontier is a graph showing the various combinations of output that the economy can possibly produce given the available factors of production and technology.
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The Production Possibilities Frontier
Quantity ofComputersProduced
Quantity ofCars Produced
3,000
0 1,000
2,000
700
1,000
300
A
B
2,200
600
C
D
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The Production Possibilities Frontier
Quantity ofComputersProduced
Quantity ofCars Produced
3,000
1,000
2,0002,200
A
7006003000 1,000
B
C
D
Productionpossibilitiesfrontier
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Concepts Illustrated by the Production Possibilities Frontier
Efficiency Tradeoffs Opportunity Cost Economic Growth
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4,000
The Production Possibilities Frontier
Quantity of ComputersProduced
Quantity ofCars Produced
3,000
2,000 A
7000 1,000
E2,100
750
An outward shift in the production possibilities
frontier
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Microeconomics and Macroeconomics
Microeconomics focuses on the individual parts of the economy. How households and firms make decisions and
how they interact in specific markets Macroeconomics looks at the economy as a
whole. How the markets, as a whole, interact at the
national level.
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Two Roles of Economists
When they are trying to explain the world, they are scientists.
When they are trying to change the world, they are policymakers.
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Positive versus Normative Analysis
Positive statements are statements that describe the world as it is. Called descriptive analysis
Normative statements are statements about how the world should be. Called prescriptive analysis
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?
?Positive or Normative
Statements?
An increase in the minimum wage will cause a decrease in employment
among the least-skilled.
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?
?
?
Positive or Normative Statements?
Higher federal budget deficits will cause interest rates to increase.
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?
? ?
?
Positive or Normative Statements?
The income gains from a higher minimum wage are worth more than any slight reductions in employment.
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?
??Positive or Normative
Statements?
State governments should be allowed to collect from tobacco companies the costs of treating smoking-related
illnesses among the poor.
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Economists in Washington . . .
. . . serve as advisers in the policymaking process of the three branches of government: Legislative Executive Judicial
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Why Economists Disagree
They may disagree on theories about how the world works.
They may hold different values and, thus, different normative views.
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Examples of What Most Economists Agree On
A ceiling on rents reduces the quantity and quality of housing available.
Tariffs and import quotas usually reduce general economic welfare.
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Summary
In order to address subjects with objectivity, economics makes use of the scientific method.
The field of economics is divided into two subfields: microeconomics and macroeconomics.
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Summary Economics relies on both positive and
normative analysis. Positive statements assert how the world “is” while normative statements assert how the world “should be.”
Economists may offer conflicting advice due to differences in scientific judgments or to differences in values.
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Graphical Review
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The Circular-Flow Diagram
Firms Households
Market for Factors
of Production
Market for Goods
and Services
SpendingRevenue
Wages, rent, and
profit
Income
Labor, land, and capital
Inputs for production
Goods & Services
sold
Goods & Services bought
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The Production Possibilities Frontier
Quantity ofComputersProduced
Quantity ofCars Produced
3,000
0 1,000
2,000
700
1,000
300
A
B
2,200
600
C
D
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The Production Possibilities Frontier
Quantity ofComputersProduced
Quantity ofCars Produced
3,000
1,000
2,0002,200
A
7006003000 1,000
B
C
D
Productionpossibilitiesfrontier
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The Production Possibilities Frontier
4,000
Quantity of ComputersProduced
Quantity ofCars Produced
3,000
2,000 A
7000 1,000
E2,100
750
An outward shift in the production possibilities
frontier