Section 1 Flashcards
(42 cards)
Economics
System of production, distributing and using wealth
Politics
Set of institutions and rules by which social and economic interactions are governed.
Market-clearing Equilibrium
The price at which the number of goods supplied equals the number demanded-the point at which supply curves intersect
Flow variable
The measure of something over a period of time
Stock variable
the measure of something right now
GDP
The market value of all final goods/services produced in the nation during a period of time
Microeconomics
the study of economic behavior in particular markets
Macroeconomics
study of the economic behavior of the entire economy by total production and employment
Expansion
A period when the economy grows
Contraction
A period when the economy goes down
Recession
A period of decline in economic activity lasting more than a few months
Depression
A severe and prolonged reduction in economic activity
Inflation
An increase in the economy’s average price level
Demand-side economics
The macro policy that focuses on shifting the aggregate demand curve as a way of promoting full employment and price stability.
supply-side economics
A macro policy that focuses on the rightward shift of the aggregate supply curve through tax-cuts
Stagflation
A contraction of a nation’s output accompanied by inflation in the price level.
Resources
the inputs, or factors, of production, used to produce the goods and services that people want
Scarcity
When the amount of people’s desire exceeds the amount of available at a zero price
Rational self-interest
Each individual tries to maximize the expected benefit achieved with a given cost
Important Questions for Political Economy
- What is happening?
- Why?
- Who gains and who loses?
- Does it matter?
- If so, what can be done and by whom?
Political Economy
- In terms of the real-world problems on which it focuses
- In terms of how these problems are analyzed
- In terms of the currents of economic thought from which it draws
6 Conceptions of Political Economy
- Classical political economy
- Marxist economics
- Institutional economics
- Keynesian economics
- Neoclassical economics
- Modern political economy
Business Cycle
- Expansion- A period when the economy grows
- Contraction- A period when the economy goes down.
- Recession- Period of decline in economic activity lasting more than a few months
- Depression- A prolonged and severe reduction in economic activity
Marginal
Incremental, additional, or extra: used to describe a change in an economic variable