1. Today’s DOA Think of two products.
Use the factors of production to explain the creation of your products.
As you are working try to answer the what, how, and for whom to produce questions.
PRODUCT
LAND
CAPATIAL
LABOR
ENTREPRENEUR
NEED
WANT

2. Introduction to Economics
Economics as a Social Science

3. What is Economics?
REMEMBER… Economics is the study of how people try satisfy their own needs/wants through the careful use of scarce resources.

4. Scarcity of Resources
REMEMBER… Condition that results from not having enough resources to produce all the things you would like to have.

5. Factors of Production REMEMBER…
Resources required to produce things we would like to have.
Production refers to the process of creating goods/services.
There are 4 factors of production:
Land
Capital
Labor
Entrepreneurs

6. Economics as a Social Science
Economics studies the behavior of people as they deal with basic issues.
There are four key elements to the study of Economics:
Description
Analysis
Explanation
Prediction

7. Economics as a Social Science
DESCRIPTION:
Describes the economic activity
Value of currency
Value of goods/services
What is produced and how much
Other factors – unemployment, trade, inflation, businesses, government

8. Economics as a Social Science
ANALYSIS (why it works):
Analyze economic activity
Pricing - ↑ or ↓
Wages - ↑ or ↓
Taxes and the affect on people

9. Economics as a Social Science
EXPLANATION (how it works):
Explain economic activity
Communicate to other people
Common understanding
Fix/resolve issues

10. Economics as a Social Science
PREDICTION (future decisions):
Predict economic activity
Develop tendencies
Find trends
Prevention methods

11. Economics as a Social Science
So, what does this all mean?...
Economic decisions fall on US; based on our system of free market in a democratic society
We are more informed citizens
Helps lead us to better decision making

12. Exit Slip Describe 3 things you learned today.
List 2 things that interest you.
Name 1 thing that needs more clarification.
Why is economics considered to be a social science?
Why do economic decisions fall on us?
Why is it important for us to understand the process of economics?