THE NATURE AND SCOPE OF ECONOMICS

What is Economics?

Economics is a very interesting subject because it analyses how human beings make choices in an
effort to maximize utility. It also analyses how a society seeks to allocate their limited resources in
other to achieve growth. The term economics is derived from two words economy and science
meaning the science of the economy or the science of proper utilization of resources. There is also the
need to understand the basic economic problems of any society because other problems revolve
around these problems.

Scarcity and Choice

Economics is the science which studies human behaviour as a relationship between ends and
scarce means which have alternative uses. This means that economics is a human science. It involves
maximizing satisfaction from scarce resource and the means available for satisfying these ends
(wants) are scarce or limited in supply.

Also the scarce means are capable of alternative uses, that is, the use of scarce resource for
one end prevents its use for any other purpose at that point in time. The ends are of varying
importance which necessarily leads to the problem of choice in selecting the uses to which scarce
resources can be put to. It is the various alternative uses of the resources that we have to decide on the
best allocation of resources.

It should be noted that this definition stands on three major facts namely: Unlimited wants,
scarcity of resources and alternative uses of the resources. It studies man’s activities in regards to
all goods and services, without distinguishing them as material and non-material; provided they
satisfy human wants. In other words, economic problem is one of allocating scarce means in relation
to numerous ends.

A better understanding of the subject matter of economics needs a probe into the scope.

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The Scope of Economics

Economics as a subject is experiencing continuous growth. A discussion on the scope of

economics includes the definition of economics, whether economics is an art or a science and whether
it is a positive or a normative science.

Economics as an Art and a Science

There have been numerous questions whether economics is an art or a science.

Economics is an art as well as a science. Economics is an art because different theories and
laws are explained with the help of graphs, figures, tables, equations. Also economics make use of
assumptions which helps to define the conditions for the application of theories, laws and relationship
between economic variables.

Economics is a science because it is a systematized body of knowledge in which economic

facts are studied and analyzed.

Economics just like science have laws and theories which trace out a causal relationship
between two or more phenomena.

For instance the law of demand tells us that, all things being equal, a fall in price leads to an
increase in demand and vice versa. A rise or fall in price is the cause while the decrease or increase in
demand is its effect.

Economics is also a science because its laws possess universal validity such as the law of
demand, law of diminishing marginal utility, etc. Some people do not regard economics as a science
because there is no scope for experimentation.

Science involves collections of facts and testing them by experimentation. Economic

phenomena are complex because they relate to man who acts irrationally as a result of tastes, habits,
social and legal institutions in the society.

Although economics deal with statistical, mathematical and econometric methods for testing,
but they are not so accurate to judge the true validity of economic laws and theories. As a result, exact
quantitative prediction becomes impossible.

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 For instance, a rise in price may not lead to a reduction in demand rather may increase
demand because people are scared of shortages in future.

But this does not mean that economics is not a science. It is rather classified as a social
science because it deals with human beings whose actions are so filled with uncertainty.

Economics as a Positive and Normative Science

According to J.N Keynes, a positive science may be defined as a body of systematized
knowledge concerning what it is; while a normative science is a body of systematized knowledge
relating to the criteria of what ought to be.

The objective of a positive science is the establishment of scientific laws; while the
objective of a normative science is the determination of the ideals.

A positive science is concerned with what is. According to Robbins, economics is a science of
what is which is not concerned with moral or ethical questions.

The positive science of economics makes it devoid of value or ethical judgment, that is, it
relates and describes facts without saying whether they are good or bad.

For instance, statements such as ‘Growth creates pollution’ or Growth gets rid of pollution’
are called positive statements –assertions of facts that can be tested.

Normative economics involves value judgment or what are simply known as value. It is
concerned with the question of what ought to be.

It makes distinction between good and bad depending on ethics and beliefs of the people
rather than on scientific laws and principles.

For instance, positive economics is concerned with how aggregate consumption and
investment, how the national income and employment, and how the general price leves are
determined; it does not go into the question of what should the prices be, what should be the savings
rate, etc. these questions of what should be and what ought to be, falls within normative economics.

Economics is both a positive and normative science because positive economics sets about to
discover what is true about the economy, while normative economics evaluates whether the facts
found are good or bad.

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Basic Economic Concepts

Scarcity: - Scarcity means limited in supply. According to Thomas Sowell, the first lesson of
economics is scarcity. There are three categories of economic resources: Land, labour and capital.
Each of these resources exists in a finite, limited quantity. People have unlimited wants and since we
have a limited amount of resources it means we can only produce a limited amount of goods and
services, that is, the limited resources cannot produce enough to satisfy everyone’s unlimited wants.
This gives rise to the study of economics for better allocation of scare resources among competing
and insatiable needs so as to maximize welfare.

Choice: A choice is a comparison of alternatives. The problem of scarcity leaves us in a situation in

which we must constantly choose which of our wants we will seek to satisfy. For instance, an
individual consumer must choose among the types of goods and services to consume because of his
limited income. He must also choose between spending on present consumption and saving for future
consumption.

The firm with its limited capital must decide what to produce and what not to produce. A situation
where the firm wants to produce two commodities, the choice to produce more of one would mean a
resolve to produce less of the other.

The government is also forced to make a choice on the nature of public goods to provide for the
citizens. The government has the task of utilizing the scare resources effectively in order to improve
the welfare of the people. Scarcity gives rise to choice and making a choice creates a sacrifice
because alternatives must be given up leading to the loss of the benefits which the alternative would
have provided.

Scale of Preference: - In economics, it is assumed that man is rational in his choice making, that is,
if a man has to choose between one thing and another, it is expected that he will always choose the
alternative that will yield the greatest satisfaction. Similarly a firm faced with how to make a choice
between production of one product and another, will choose the product that will yield the greatest
profits. Scale of preference presents a list of wants arranged in order of importance with the most
pressing want listed first, followed by the second most pressing need and so on.

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Opportunity Cost: - Opportunity cost means forgone alternative. People must make choices because
of limited resources. Every choice has an opportunity cost and so the satisfaction of one want
involves forsaking the other. Therefore the real cost of satisfying any want is the alternative forgone
or the opportunity cost. For instance, suppose a community uses a land and other resources to build a
school instead of a factory, the opportunity cost of choosing the school is the loss of the factory and
what could have been produced by building the factory. Also if a student misses his lecture on
economics because he wants to go to the cinema, the cost to him is the lectures that he decides to
miss. Opportunity cost of any choice is the value of the best alternative forgone in making it and not
simply the amount spent on that choice.

Central Economic Problems of any Economy

All modern economies have certain fundamental or basic economic problems to deal with.
The limited resources have led to the problem of how to assign the scare resources in order to achieve
maximum satisfaction. There is the need to economize and utilize these resources in the most efficient
manner in order to satisfy the welfare of the society. These problems are called central economic
problems because other problems revolve around them. They are:

What to produce: - This has to do with the problem of allocation of resources among different goods
and services. It involves selection of what should be produced and in what quantity in order to satisfy
consumer wants as best as possible using the available resources. The society has to choose among
different kinds of goods and decide on how to allocate resources among them, for instance whether to
produce capital goods or consumer goods. The society also needs to determine the specific quantity
of each type of good to be produced. In a market economy, the choice of what to produce is made by
the buyers in other to fulfill their needs. Government can through its laws determine what to produce
in a given economy. But the production of one good means a reduction in the production of another.

How to Produce: -This problem refers to selection of appropriate technique of production, that is,
how to combine resources in other to produce goods and service in a more efficient way and at a
minimum cost. A combination of resources (factors) implies a technique of production. The technique
of using a combination which involves less capital and more labour is known as labour-intensive
mode of production while a combination of more capital and less labour is capital-intensive mode of
production. The decision on which resource combination to use depends on availability of factors and

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their relative prices. Therefore, it is in the interest of the society that factors should be combined in a
manner that maximum output can be produced at minimum cost, using least possible scarce
resources.

For whom to produce: - This economic problem focuses on how the national product is to be
distributed among the members of the society, that is, how the consumer goods and capital goods will
be distributed. The society has to decide who receives the outputs produced in the economy because
human wants are unlimited. Should the economy produce goods for those with high incomes or for
those with low income? What demographic group should production be targeted at? The money
income of the people determines the distribution of output in the society. The greater ones money
income, the greater the quantity of goods the person will purchase from the market. Sometimes the
supply of goods are in short supply leading to government intervention through price legislation,
rationing or through quotas.

What provision should be made for economic growth?

This problem deals with how to decide on how much saving and investment should be made for
future economic growth. No society or individual would like to use all its scarce resources for only
current consumption or else future production will remain stagnant leading to a decline in the levels
of living. The society should devote a part of its resources for the production of capital goods and for
the promotion of research and development activities. Capital and technological progress achieved in
this way will lead to production of consumer goods in the future and increase standard of living.

Microeconomics and Macroeconomics

Economics is divided into two major areas – Microeconomics and Macroeconomics

Microeconomics: - The word micro is derived from the Greek word mikros meaning small.
Microeconomics is a branch of economics that is concerned with the behavior of individual
consumers, firms, industries, commodities and prices.

It studies how decisions made by individuals and businesses affect the prices of goods and
services. The main objective of microeconomics is to maximize utility and minimize cost. It is also
known as the price theory.

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 The major drawback of microeconomics is the unrealistic assumption of full employment
condition in an economy and it deals with the part of the economy instead of the whole economy.

Macroeconomics: - The word macro is derived from the Greek word makros meaning large. It is that
branch of economics that focus on the impact of choices on the total or aggregate level of economic
activities.

Macroeconomics is the study of aggregates of individuals, firms, prices and outputs. In other
words, it studies the economy as a whole.

It analyses issues such as aggregate level of employment, the general price level, aggregate
savings and investment in the economy.

The main objectives of macroeconomics are full employment, economic growth, favourable
balance of payment and price stability.

The major limitation of macroeconomics is that it ignores the welfare of individuals in an

economy and it takes into account only aggregate variables which may not clearly explain economic
conditions.

Microeconomics differs from macroeconomics in that while microeconomics maps up close

how individuals make decisions and how these decisions affect the price and output of various goods
and services, macroeconomics analyses not individuals but aggregates of the economy. While
microeconomics studies how an individual firm employs its labours, macroeconomics studies the
total employment in a given economy. While microeconomics is particularly concerned with the
relative prices of goods and service; macroeconomics studies total prices of all goods and services in
the economy.

The division between microeconomics and macroeconomics is not rigid, they are interrelated.
What affects the part affects the whole while the whole is made up of the parts. For instance, national
income is the sum of the incomes of individuals, households, firms and industries. Also aggregates
that are studied in macroeconomics are nothing but individual quantities which are studied in
microeconomics. Moreover, modern macroeconomics is based upon the study of microeconomics.
Therefore, microeconomics and macroeconomics cannot be isolated from each other.

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