Incentives
Introduction In economics, incentives matter. If you make decisions without thinking about your personal incentives, let us know. Definitions and Basics ● Incentives Matter, by Russ Roberts at Econlib ● Incentives matter.…
Wellbeing and Welfare
Introduction ● The word "welfare" has two very different meanings in economics. The most familiar meaning to the general public is that it refers to a collection of government programs such…
Property Rights
Introduction ● You may wonder what property rights have to do with economics. Your property--your house, your car, your pets--are items you buy and own. There are also intellectual property rights…
Cost-Benefit Analysis
Introduction ● Cost-benefit analysis and benefit-cost analysis refer to the same thing--weighing the pros and cons so you can make a decision. ● Many costs and benefits are not obvious the first…
Economic Systems
Introduction Definitions and Basics ● Capitalism, from the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics ● Capitalism, a term of disparagement coined by socialists in the midnineteenth century, is a misnomer for "economic individualism," which Adam Smith…
Efficiency
Introduction Definitions and Basics ● Efficiency, by Paul Heyne, from the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics ● To economists, efficiency is a relationship between ends and means. When we call a situation inefficient, we are…
Scarcity
Introduction ● In economics, scarcity refers to limitations--limited goods or services, limited time, or limited abilities to achieve the desired ends. Life would be so much easier if everything were free!…
Is Economics a Science?
Introduction ● Everyone recognizes that physics is a science. Everyone also recognizes economics--a "social science"-- is somehow not quite the same as physics in its ability to be science-like. But what is a…
Economic exchange
Economic behaviour involves the exchange of one scarce resource for another. When people engage in paid work, they exchange their scarce time, effort, and skill for income, and, when people…
Property rights
Markets are efficient at producing private goods, largely because producers and consumers have the right of ownership of the resources exchanged in an economic transaction involving a private good. However,…
