Principle of Economics—Discussions and Assignment

Week 3

Looking Closely at Cost and Competition

Watch this video (Revenues, Profits, and Price) to help you prepare for this week’s discussion:

Reply to these prompts using the company for which you currently work, a business with which you’re familiar, or the dream business you want to start:

• What are some key fixed and variable costs for this business? Remember, fixed costs do not change when output changes. That is, fixed costs remain even if the company is producing nothing. Variable costs increase as output increases.

Week 4

Exploring Monopolies and Oligopolies

Watch this video (Oligopolies and Monopolistic Competition) to help you prepare for this week’s discussion:

Reply to these prompts using the company for which you currently work, a business with which you are familiar, or a dream business you want to start:

• Does the business operate in a market that is characterized by perfect competition, monopolistic competition, oligopoly, or pure monopoly? Explain how you drew your conclusion about its market structure.

Week 5

Considering Tradeoffs You Make Every Day

Let’s talk about two tradeoffs we face every day: how we spend our time and money.

We can spend our income, or save it for investing. We can spend time working to earn an income, or we do other things that we broadly call leisure.

Reply to these prompts to start your discussion:

• Describe a tradeoff you have made in terms of your income or your time. What choice did you make with your money or time? Why did you make that choice?

Week 6

Is the GDP Still Accurate in the Digital Age?

GDP is the sum of all income earned in a country during a year. Alternatively, it can be thought of as the value of all production in an economy during a year. But do income and production measure happiness?The way we measure GDP can both overstate and understate people’s happiness and well-being. It understates economic activity and well-being when it does not take into account production that is not exchanged in a market (grandma providing free baby-sitting) and leisure time. It overstates well-being when two otherwise identical activities are measured the same even though one produces more pollution.

Reply to these questions to begin your discussion:

• Should we continue to measure GDP as we do now? If you don’t think it should be changed, explain your reasoning. If you think it should be changed, what changes would you recommend, and why?

Week 7

Unemployment and Inflation

Two of the biggest issues in macroeconomics are inflation and unemployment. Policymakers would like to keep both of these measures low. Often, however, there is a tradeoff between the two. A strong economy that lowers unemployment can put upward pressure on prices. A weak economy that lowers inflation can increase unemployment.

We currently have the benefit of both very low unemployment and inflation. But things could change and it’s good to have policy plans in place before either of these problems gets too bad.

Imagine that you are in charge of macroeconomic policy. Answer these questions, being sure to explain your answers.

• What are some of the problems, difficulties, or hardships caused by unemployment?
• What are some of the problems, difficulties, or hardships caused by inflation?
• If you had to make a choice today between a policy that would head off increases in inflation or increases in unemployment, which one would you choose?

Assignment

Assignment 1: Economic Brief

Due Week 5,

This assignment is aligned to these course outcomes:

• Explain economic principles and their applications in the real world.
• Summarize the different types of market structures and the role of government in economics.

In the workplace, we are often asked to create “briefs.” A brief provides a snapshot, or short, written summary, of a situation or event that has occurred. It is generally just a few pages long and may include additional visuals like a graph, chart, or table. In this assignment, write a brief about economic concepts in an industry that interests you.

An example economic brief, template, and resources are provided below.

Example Economic Brief, Assignment 1 Template, Strayer Writing Standards (SWS)

1. Review an example brief.
2. Use the optional template to help you get started.
3. Get familiar with the Strayer Writing Standards (SWS). (See Instructions below.)

Industry Selection

Use this resource to select an industry and learn about the products and services it provides:

• NAICS (North American Industry Classification System)
  • Select the number next to the industry to see its subsectors, e.g., select 52 to see Finance and Insurance.
  • Select that same number again to read about the industry as a whole or select a sub-category. For example, Mining is 21, and Oil and Gas Extraction, a sub-category, is 211.

Instructions

Review your previous chapter readings and use the resource above to develop an economic brief that is two to three (2-3) pages long in which you:

1. Select an industry and describe the goods and/or services this industry produces. Use the NAICS resource above to help you select an industry (and/or subsector) for your brief.
2. Identify this industry’s market structure and at least two or more market characteristics that support this market structure. (Market structures are covered in Weeks 3 and 4.)
3. Describe any notable microeconomic relationships, market outcomes, and/or trends in this industry. Include a graph, chart, or table containing related data. (Microeconomic relationships and market outcomes are covered in Weeks 2 through 4.)
4. How might government impact this industry’s market prices, output, and/or market structure? (Government intervention through price controls, industry regulations, and antitrust enforcement is covered in Weeks 2 and 4.)
5. This course requires use of Strayer Writing Standards (SWS). The format is different compared to other Strayer University courses. Please take a moment to review the SWS documentation for details. (Note: You’ll be prompted to enter your Blackboard login credentials to view these standards.)

• Your brief should include a cover page.
• Your brief should be two to three (2-3) pages in length (not including the cover page), double-spaced, 12-point font.
• Your brief should include a minimum of one (1) reference/citation in the text.