Economics Flashcards
economics
the study of human behavior in response to the production, consumption, and distribution of assets or wealth
subgroups of economics
microeconomics macroeconomics
microeconomics
the study of individual or small group behaviors and patterns in relationship to such things as earning and spending money
macroeconomics
focuses on how a society or nation’s goods, services, spending habits, and other factors affect the people of that entity
scarcity
created through limited resources and high demands
economic systems
determine what is being produced, who is producing it, who receives the product, and the money generated by the sale of the product
types of economic systems
market economies and planned or command economies
market economies
- privately owned businesses, groups, or individuals providing goods or services based on demand
- the types of goods and services provided (supply) are based on that demand
- two types: competitive market and free market
competitive market
due to the large number of both buyers and sellers, there is no way any one seller or buyer can control the market or price
free market
voluntary private trades between buyers and sellers determine markets and prices without government intervention or monopolies
planned or command economies
- the government or central authority determines market prices of goods and services
- government or central authority determines what is being produced as well as the quantity of production
- some advantages to command economies include a large number of shared goods such as public service (transportation, schools, or hospitals)
- disadvantages include wastefulness of resources
factors of production
used to create goods and services to make economic profit
four factors of production
land: both renewable and nonrenewable resources
labor: effort put forth by people to produce goods and service
capital: the tools used to create goods and services
entrepreneurship: persons who combine land, labor, and capital to create new goods and services
supply
amount of a product that a market can offer
demand
the quantity of a product needed or desired by buyers
taxes
- generate government revenue
- discourage purchase or use of “bad” products such as alcohol or cigarettes
subsidies
- lower the price of goods and services
- reassure the supply of goods and services
- allow opportunities to compete with overseas vendors
price controls
- act as emergency measures when government intervention is necessary
- set a minimum or maximum price for goods and services
distribution of income
how wages are distributed across a society or segments of a society