Economics For Dummies

Features

• Cover Type: Paperback with 384 pages
• Published by: For Dummies April 8, 2005
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 0764557262
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-0764557262
• Book Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 0.9 inches
• Weighs: 1.2 pounds

Product Description
If you think economics is a complicated discipline that’s reserved for theorists and the intellectual elite and has nothing to do with you, think again. Economics impacts every aspect of our lives, from what we eat, to how we dress, to where we live. Economics might be complicated, but it has everything to do with you.

Economics For Dummies helps you see how your personal financial picture is influenced by the greater economic picture. When you understand how what happens on Wall Street affects Main Street and how policies emanating from the White House impact the finances in your house, you’ll be able to:

• Learn how government economic decisions affect you and your family
• Make better spending decisions and improve your personal finances
• Maximize your business profits
• Make wiser investments

Written by Sean M. Flynn, PhD, Assistant Professor of Economics at Vassar College, Economics For Dummies covers all the basics of micro- and macroeconomic theory. The next time you need to understand an economic theory or calculation, whether it’s on the nightly news or on a spreadsheet at work, you’ll no longer be in the dark. Economics For Dummies covers all the history, principles, major theories, and terminology, including:

• How economics affect governments, international relations, business, and even environmental issues like global warming and endangered species
• How the government fights recessions and unemployment using monetary and fiscal policy
• How and why international trade is good for you even if you don’t appreciate French champagne, Irish crystal, or Swiss watches
• How the law of supply and demand can explain the prices of everything from comic books to open heart surgeries
• How the Federal Reserve controls the money supply, interest rates, and inflation
• Basic theories such as Keynesian economics, the Laffer Curve, and Adam Smith’s Invisible Hand

Presenting complex theories in simple terms and helping you decode the jargon, understand the equations, and debunk the common misconceptions, Economics For Dummies could be a big boon to your personal economy!

Back Cover Copy
Demystify the science of how people make choices

Learn how economics affects you - and almost everything else!

In a world of limited resources, how do people maximize their happiness? That's what economics is all about, and Economics For Dummies tackles the topic in terms you can understand. This handy guide explains both macro- and microeconomics so you can comprehend the economic forces that shape our world.

Discover how to

• Decipher consumer behavior
• Use the model of supply and demand
• Recognize what causes recessions
• Identify factors that lead to inflation
• Understand fiscal and monetary policies
• Appreciate the importance of international trade

Reader Reviews
This is probably the first and last review I'll ever do of a "Dummies" book, but I just had to give this book a plug. Whoever wrote it (I don't remember and I'm too lazy to scroll up and see) did a fantastic job. It's really good! I confess that I was so impressed with the explanations and examples offered in this book that for a while I mulled over having our school switch from our current texts (Mankiw's "Principles of Macroeconomics" and Samuelson's "Economics") to this one. But I soon thought better of it: the department would probably acquire a bad name in a big hurry if students were seen walking about with copies of a "Dummies" text under their arms as their official course text. And that would be bad for me. But that's how good it is. Too bad I'm so self-interested! Now the students will just have to slog through inferior texts. Don't think you're getting a free lunch, though: there are graphs, models, and equations you're gonna have to learn to wade through it. But in my estimation, going through a layman's course in both micro- and macroeconomics could not be made more painless than here, unless your needs are so casual that you're looking to dispense with graphs and equations altogether. In which case, good luck learning anything solid about economics!