a-level学习资料：经济学AS讲义---basic ecnomic idea.doc

来源：青岛扬格剑桥A-level中心 /Topic 1 Basic Economic Ideas1. What is Economics?Economics studies the allocation of scarce (scarce = limited) resources in response to unlimited wants.2. What is scarcityScarcity is basic economic problem?l Limited resources: 资源的有限性 In economic we categories the resources available to us into four types. There are known as factors of production:1) . Land: 土地，又称自然资源，它包括土地、森林、矿藏和河流等一切自然资源。natural resources in their natural states. Examples: minerals, oil, water, forests.2) Labor 劳动，它是指人类拥有的体力和脑力劳动的总和 the human capacity to work.3) Capital 资本，亦称资本货物（或资本品），它是指人类所生产出来的且用于生产其他产品所需的一切工具、机器设配、厂房等的总称 anything that is produced in order to increase productivity in the future; includes human capital and physical capital.In economics, capital does NOT include financial capital, such as money, stocks, and bonds!Examples: Machines, vehicles, buildings (factories, warehouses, offices, etc.), skills.Physical capital（物质资本） includes buildings, machinery, and equipment.Human capital （人力资本） acquired skills and abilities embodied within a person.4) Entrepreneurship 企业家才能，是指企业家组织生产、经营管理、努力创新和承担风险的能力总和，有时简称为“企业家”或“管理才能” personal initiative to combine resources in productive ways. Involves risk.l Unlimited wants： 欲望的无限性Scarcity: Wants are unlimited but resources are scarce.相对于人类需要的无限性而言，任何资源和商品都是稀缺的 3. How scarcity implies choice？ l Scarcity means we must choose. （because of scarcity, we need to decide how to use limited resources） When you use a resource for one good, you cant use that resource for something else.Example: the building we are in is being used as a school. Therefore, we do not get to use it as a hotel, business office, or anything else that we want. We must choose one thing.4. Opportunity cost:机会成本使用所失去的最佳选择来度量的成本或收益。 The benefit lost from the next best alternativeThe relationship between scarcity, choice and opportunity cost.5. The three basic economic problemsa. what to produce？b. How to produce？c. For whom to produce?The three basic economic problems can be answered differently in different economic systems:a: command economic system: 1) Planners have to decide what is to be produced.2) Planners then have to decide to how it is to be made.3) Finally planners have to make decisions about distribution-which consumers will receive what goods and services.The key features of a command economy are that central government and its constituent organizations take responsibility for:l The allocation of resourcesl The determination of production targets for all sectors of the economyl The distribution of income and the determination of wagesl The ownership of most productive resources and propertyl Planning the long-term growth of the economy.An evaluation of command economiesDisadvantage: In a planned economy, individuals have relatively little Choice In a planned economy, it is difficult to provide sufficient incentives for enterprises and individual workers to produce good quality products. Queuing is endemic in many planned economies. Environment is even worse than market econoAdvantage:1) Planners set high priorities on providing all citizens with a minimum standard of living. But equally, there is considerable evidence to suggest that those in power used the planning system to their own advantage.2) Karl Marx dreamt of creating a society in which each would receive according to their need. Communist planned economies, to some extent, achieved this reduction in risk for the individual. However, it can be argued that removing risk also removes incentives to work and create wealth.Command economies can only work if there is a centralized bureaucracy devising and implementing plans. They leave little room for individual freedom. Whether a pure command economy could operate within a political democracy is debatable.b. market economic system l What is to be produced? In a pure free market, it is the consumer which determines the allocation of resources.l How is it to be produced?Producers are in competition with each other. producers must produce at lowest cost if they are to survive in the market place. This then determines how goods are produced.l For whom?This is determined by ownership of the factors of production.An evaluation of free market economyAdvantage:1) one of the principal advantages claimed for market forces is that they promote efficiency. 2) the profit motive provides an incentive for entrepreneurs to produce high-quality products and to innovate. Similarly, the possibility of high wages encourages workers to train, work hard and take on extra responsibility.3) Changes in consumer tastes and demand for workers are signalled quickly and aotomatically through the price mechanism. Consumers, producers and workers have more economic freedom than in a planned economy to pursue their own self-interest.Disadvantage: Because markets do not always perform well and they may fail to produce an outcome that maximises benefits to society. (market failure)1) in seeking to reduce their costs, firms may create pollution by dumping their waste materials and depleting non-renewable resources. Their self-interest may conflict with the needs of the enviornment and the long-run needs of the economy.2) Private sector firms only have an incentive to produce products that consumers want and are willing to pay for. Goods and services that consumers do not want to pay for directly may mot be produced. (public goods and merit goods)3) In the absence of governemnt intervention, consumers may not choose to consume the socially disirable levels of all products.( demerit goods and merit goods)4) Consumer sovereignty can be reduced by advertising and by producer power. 5) Some economists describe market economies as economic democracies with consumers expressing their preferences by “voting power”. because people have different income levels and so different purchasing power. Those with the highest purchasing power have the most influence on what is produced. Some products wanted by poor people will not be produced.6) Market economies often have a more unequal distribution of income than planned economies.C. the mixed economy:Decisions on most important economic issues involve some form of planning (by private as well as public enterprises) and interaction between government, businesses and labor through the market mechanism.At this time the government was responsible for:1) Substantial areas of public expenditure such as health, social services, education and defence;2) The direct operation of nationalised industries3) Providing support for large areas of manifacturing6. production possibility curveMaximum output of a combination of two types of products that an economy, area, firm, or individual can produce with its current resources and technology.a. the law of increasing costs: because the resources are specialization.b. Economic Growth the ability of the economy to produce more or better output.Economic growth causes the PPF to shift7. the margin: decision making at the margine8. Positive and normative statements:Positive statements are objective statements that can be tested or rejected by referring to the available evidence. E.gl A rise in consumer incomes will lead to a rise in the demand for new carsl A fall in the exchange rate will lead to an increase in exports overseas.l More competition in markets can lead to lower prices for consumers.Normative statements express an opinion about what ought to be. They are subjective statements usually include or imply the words “ought” or “should”. E.g.l the level of duty on petrol is too unfair and unfairly penelizes motoristsl the government is right to introduce a ban on smoking in public palcesl the government should increase the national minimum wage to $ 6 per hour in order to reduce relative poverty.l Russell Crowe is the best actor in the world9. ceteris paribus: assume other things being equal 10. Division of labor:Division of labor: is a particular type of specialization where the production of a good is broken up into many separate tasks each performed by one person or by a small group of people.The advantage of division of labor: the division of labor raises output per person (productivity), thereby reducing costs per unit because lower skilled workers are easily trained and quickly become proficient through constant repetition of a taskPractice makes perfect or learning by doingThe risks of division of labor: a. May eventually reduce efficiency and increase unit cost because unrewarding, repetitive work lowers worker motivation and productivity.b. May reduce firms flexibility. ( if one machine breaks down then the entire factory stops)c. Some workers receive a narrow training and may not be able to find alternative jobs if they find themselves out of work.d. Mass-produced standardized good tend to lack variety.To avoid the risks of division of labor some companies have moved away from division of labor.11. Money: its functions and characteristicsMarkets, money and exchangeExchange perimit speicialization and increases output.a. products are exchanged in marketsb. money makes these exchanges much easie