OVERVIEW

In order to “make a difference in the world” students must understand how the world functions at various different levels. A course in economics presents the student with a distinct (from other social science) and distinctly useful approach to thinking about how the world functions at the most fundamental of levels. The universal challenge of how to deal with the problem of scarcity is a crucial one in that society’s that do it wrong end up being very poor, while those that do it right may achieve very high standards of living. For most students, this course will provide the basic introduction to the world of economics. The course will examine the American economy (although the analytical tools that we develop in this class can be applied to other countries with other economic systems as well) primarily from the viewpoint of individual entities such as consumers and business firms. After an introduction to the basic economic problem that confronts all societies, we will explore in detail the workings of a free-market economic system, including the topics of demand and supply, consumer choice, the theory of the firm, resource markets, and the efficient use of economic resources.

OBJECTIVES

As a result of taking this course, the student will:

1.         develop an understanding of the economic approach to looking at the world, especially the notions of scarcity and opportunity cost and the supply and demand model;

2.         appreciate how a free-market economic system functions, as well as the benefits and problems that may arise under such a system, including monopoly power, externalities, public goods, and issues regarding the distribution of income;

3.         understand the economic approach to consumer behavior, including elasticity, utility theory, behavioral economics, and budget constraint/indifference curve analysis;

4.         understand the economic approach to cost analysis, including costs in the short-run and in the long-run;

5.         understand the idea of market structure and its implications for economic performance;

6.         apply the tools of economic analysis to a variety of real-world problems and discover the insights they can offer;

7.         be familiar with public choice theory and its implications for the ability of government to solve economic problems;

8.         learn to think like economists.