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1、Thinking Like an EconomistChapter 2Copyright 2001 by Harcourt,Inc.All rights reserved.Requests for permission to make copies of any part of thework should be mailed to:Permissions Department,Harcourt College Publishers,6277 Sea Harbor Drive,Orlando,Florida 32887-6777.Every field of study has its own

2、 terminologyMathematicsaxiomsintegralsvector spacesPsychologyegoidcognitive dissonanceLawtortsvenuesPromissory estoppelEvery field of study has its own terminologyEconomicsSupplyDemandElasticityConsumer SurplusComparative advantageOpportunity costDeadweight lossThe Economist as a ScientistThe econom

3、ic way of thinking.nInvolves thinking analytically and objectively.nMakes use of the scientific method.The Scientific MethoduUses abstract models to help explain how a complex,real world operates.uDevelops theories,collects,and analyzes data to prove the theories.Observation,Theory and More Observat

4、ion!The Role of Assumptionsu Economists make assumptions in order to make the world easier to understand.u The art in scientific thinking is deciding which assumptions to make.u Economists use different assumptions to answer different questions.Economic Modelsu Economists use models to simplify real

5、ity in order to improve our understanding of the world.u Two of the most basic economic models include:uThe Circular Flow ModeluThe Production Possibilities FrontierThe Circular-Flow ModelThe circular-flow model is a simple way to visually show the economic transactions that occur between households

6、 and firms in the economy.The Circular-Flow DiagramFirmsHouseholdsMarket for Factors of ProductionMarket for Goods and ServicesSpendingRevenueWages,rent,and profitIncomeGoods&Services soldGoods&Services boughtLabor,land,and capitalInputs for productionThe Circular-Flow DiagramHouseholdsu Buy and con

7、sume goods and servicesu Own and sell factors of productionFirmsu Produce and sell goods and servicesu Hire and use factors of productionThe Circular-Flow DiagramMarkets for Factors of Productionu Households sellu Firms buyMarkets for Goods&Servicesu Firms sellu Households buyThe Circular-Flow Diagr

8、amFactors of Productionn Inputs used to produce goods and servicesn Land,labor,and capitalThe Production Possibilities FrontierThe production possibilities frontier is a graph showing the various combinations of output that the economy can possibly produce given the available factors of production a

9、nd technology.The Production Possibilities FrontierQuantity ofComputersProducedQuantity ofCars Produced3,00001,0002,0007001,000300AB2,200600CDConcepts Illustrated by the Production Possibilities FrontieruEfficiencyuTradeoffsuOpportunity CostuEconomic Growth4,000The Production Possibilities FrontierQ

10、uantity of ComputersProducedQuantity ofCars Produced3,0002,000A70001,000E2,100750An outward shift in the production possibilities frontierMicroeconomics and MacroeconomicsuMicroeconomics focuses on the individual parts of the economy.uHow households and firms make decisions and how they interact in

11、specific marketsuMacroeconomics looks at the economy as a whole.uHow the markets,as a whole,interact at the national level.Two Roles of EconomistsuWhen they are trying to explain the world,they are scientists.uWhen they are trying to change the world,they are policymakers.Positive versus Normative A

12、nalysisuPositive statements are statements that describe the world as it is.uCalled descriptive analysisuNormative statements are statements about how the world should be.uCalled prescriptive analysis?Positive or Normative Statements?An increase in the minimum wage will cause a decrease in employmen

13、t among the least-skilled.?Positive or Normative Statements?Higher federal budget deficits will cause interest rates to increase.?Positive or Normative Statements?State governments should be allowed to collect from tobacco companies the costs of treating smoking-related illnesses among the poor.Econ

14、omists in Washington.serve as advisers in the policymaking process of the three branches of government:uLegislativeuExecutiveuJudicialWhy Economists DisagreeuThey may disagree on theories about how the world works.uThey may hold different values and,thus,different normative views.SummaryuEconomists

15、try to address their subjects with a scientists objectivity.uThey make appropriate assumptions and build simplified models in order to understand the world around them.uTwo simple economic models are the circular-flow diagram and the production possibilities frontier.SummaryuThe field of economics i

16、s divided into two subfields:microeconomics and macroeconomics.uMicroeconomists study decisionmaking by households and firms in the marketplace.u Macroeconomists study the forces and trends that affect the economy as a whole.SummaryuEconomics relies on both positive and normative analysis.uPositive

17、statements is an assertion about how the world“is”.uNormative statements is an assertion about how the world“ought to be”.uWhen economists make normative statements,they are acting more as policy advisors than scientists.SummaryuEconomists who advise policymakers may offer conflicting advice either because of differences in scientific judgments or because of differences in values.uAt other times,economists are united in the advice they offer,but policymakers may choose to ignore it.