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Economist



 
 
An economist is an expert in the social science of economics
Economics

File:Ballard Farmers' Market - vegetables.jpgEconomics is the Social sciences that studies the Production theory basics, Distribution , and Consumption of Good and Service ....
. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy
Economic policy

Economic policy refers to the actions that governments take in the economics. It covers the systems for setting interest rates and government deficit as well as the labour market, nationalization, and many other areas of government....
. Within this field there are many sub-fields, ranging from the broad philosophical
Philosophy

Philosophy is the study of general problems concerning matters such as existence, knowledge, truth, beauty, justice, validity, mind, and language....
 theories
Theory

For a more detailed account of theories as expressed in formal language as they are studied in mathematical logic see Theory A theory, in the general sense of the word, is an analytic structure designed to explain a set of observations....
 to the focused study of minutiae within specific markets, macroeconomic analysis, microeconomic analysis or financial analysis
Financial analysis

Financial analysis refers to an assessment of the viability, stability and profitability of a business, sub-business or project.It is performed by professionals who prepare reports using ratios that make use of information taken from financial statements and other reports....
, involving analytical methods and tools such as econometrics
Econometrics

Econometrics is concerned with the tasks of developing and applying quantitative or statistical methods to the study and elucidation of economic principles....
, statistics
Statistics

Statistics is a Mathematics pertaining to the collection, analysis, interpretation or explanation, and presentation of data. It also provides tools for prediction and forecasting based on data....
, economics computational model
Computational model

A computational model is a mathematical model in computational science that requires extensive computational resources to study the behavior of a complex system by computer simulation....
s, financial economics
Financial economics

Financial economics is the branch of economics concerned with "the allocation and deployment of economic resources, both spatially and across time, in an uncertain environment" ....
, financial mathematics and mathematical economics
Mathematical economics

Mathematical economics refers to the application of mathematical methods to represent economic theories and analyze problems posed in economics....
.

professionalization of economics, reflected in academia, has been described as "the main change in economics since around 1900." Economists debate the path they believe their profession should take.






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An economist is an expert in the social science of economics
Economics

File:Ballard Farmers' Market - vegetables.jpgEconomics is the Social sciences that studies the Production theory basics, Distribution , and Consumption of Good and Service ....
. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy
Economic policy

Economic policy refers to the actions that governments take in the economics. It covers the systems for setting interest rates and government deficit as well as the labour market, nationalization, and many other areas of government....
. Within this field there are many sub-fields, ranging from the broad philosophical
Philosophy

Philosophy is the study of general problems concerning matters such as existence, knowledge, truth, beauty, justice, validity, mind, and language....
 theories
Theory

For a more detailed account of theories as expressed in formal language as they are studied in mathematical logic see Theory A theory, in the general sense of the word, is an analytic structure designed to explain a set of observations....
 to the focused study of minutiae within specific markets, macroeconomic analysis, microeconomic analysis or financial analysis
Financial analysis

Financial analysis refers to an assessment of the viability, stability and profitability of a business, sub-business or project.It is performed by professionals who prepare reports using ratios that make use of information taken from financial statements and other reports....
, involving analytical methods and tools such as econometrics
Econometrics

Econometrics is concerned with the tasks of developing and applying quantitative or statistical methods to the study and elucidation of economic principles....
, statistics
Statistics

Statistics is a Mathematics pertaining to the collection, analysis, interpretation or explanation, and presentation of data. It also provides tools for prediction and forecasting based on data....
, economics computational model
Computational model

A computational model is a mathematical model in computational science that requires extensive computational resources to study the behavior of a complex system by computer simulation....
s, financial economics
Financial economics

Financial economics is the branch of economics concerned with "the allocation and deployment of economic resources, both spatially and across time, in an uncertain environment" ....
, financial mathematics and mathematical economics
Mathematical economics

Mathematical economics refers to the application of mathematical methods to represent economic theories and analyze problems posed in economics....
.

In academia

The professionalization of economics, reflected in academia, has been described as "the main change in economics since around 1900." Economists debate the path they believe their profession should take. It is, primarily, a debate between a scholastic orientation, focused on mathematical techniques, and a public discourse orientation, which is more focused on communicating to lay people pertinent economic principles as they relate to public policy. Surveys among economists indicate a preference for a shift toward the latter. However, these preferences expressed in private often differ with what is actually acted out in the public eye.

Most major universities have an economics faculty, school or department, where academic degree
Academic degree

A degree is any of a wide range of status levels conferred by institutions of higher education, such as University, normally as the result of successfully completing a program of study....
s are awarded in economics. However, many prominent economists come from a background in mathematics
Mathematics

Mathematics is the study of quantity, structure, space, change, and related topics of pattern and form. Mathematicians seek out patterns whether found in numbers, space, natural science, computers, imaginary abstractions, or elsewhere....
, engineering
Engineering

Engineering is the discipline and profession of applying Technology and science knowledge and utilizing natural laws and physical resources in order to design and implement materials, structures, machines, devices, systems, and process that safely realize a desired objective and meet specified criteria....
, business
Business

A business is a legally recognized organization designed to provide good s and/or Service to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalism economies, most being privately owned and formed to earn profit that will increase the wealth of its owners....
, law
LAW

LAW may refer to:* Anti-tank warfare, e.g. the US Army M72 LAW or the British Army LAW 80*Palestinian Society for the Protection of Human Rights ...
, sociology
Sociology

Sociology is a branch of the social sciences that uses systematic methods of Empiricism and critical theory to develop and refine a body of knowledge about human social structure and activity, sometimes with the goal of applying such knowledge to the pursuit of social welfare....
, or history
HIStory

HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I is a double album by Michael Jackson, released on June 20, 1995, and is Jackson's ninth. The first disc, named "HIStory Begins" consists of a selection of Jackson's greatest hits from the singer's past fifteen years, while the second, named "HIStory Continues" features new songs, with the...
. Getting a PhD in economics takes six years, on average, with a median of 5.3 years.

The Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics, established by Sveriges Riksbank
Sveriges Riksbank

Sveriges Riksbank, or simply Riksbanken, is the central bank of Sweden and the world's oldest central bank. It is sometimes called the Swedish National Bank or the Bank of Sweden...
 in 1968, is a prize awarded to economists each year for outstanding intellectual contributions in the field of economics. The prize winners are announced in October every year. They receive their awards (a prize amount, a gold medal and a diploma) on December 10, the anniversary of Alfred Nobel
Alfred Nobel

was a Sweden chemist, engineer, innovator, armaments manufacturer and the inventor of dynamite. He owned Bofors, a major armaments manufacturer, which he had redirected from its previous role as an iron and steel mill....
's death.

Professions

Economists work in many fields including academia, government and in the private sector, where they may also "...study data and statistics in order to spot trends in economic activity, economic confidence levels, and consumer attitudes. They assess this information using advanced methods in statistical analysis, mathematics, computer programming [and] they make recommendations about ways to improve the efficiency of a system or take advantage of trends as they begin."

It is more difficult to define the professional category of "economists" than to define regulated professions such as engineering, law or medicine. While a lawyer, for example, may be generally defined as a person possessing a law degree and state license to practice law, there is not a legally-required educational requirement or license for economists. In some job settings, the possession of a Bachelor's or Master's degree in economics is considered the minimum credential for being an economist. However, in some parts of the US government, a person can be considered an economist as long as they have four or more university courses in economics. As well, a person can gain the skills required to become a professional economist in other related disciplines, such as statistics or some types of applied mathematics
Applied mathematics

Applied mathematics is a branch of mathematics that concerns itself with the mathematical techniques typically used in the application of mathematical knowledge to other domains....
, such as mathematical finance
Mathematical finance

Mathematical finance is the branch of applied mathematics concerned with the financial markets.The subject has a close relationship with the discipline of financial economics, which is concerned with much of the underlying theory....
 or game theory
Game theory

Game theory is a branch of applied mathematics that is used in the social sciences , biology, engineering, political science, international relations, computer science , and philosophy....
.

A professional working inside of one of many fields of economics or having an academic degree in this subject is widely considered to be an economist, and any person within any of these fields can claim to be one. Economists are also employed in banking, finance
Finance

The field of finance refers to the concepts of time, money and risk and how they are interrelated. Banks are the main facilitators of funding through the provision of credit, although private equity, mutual funds, hedge funds, and other organizations have become important....
, accountancy
Accountancy

Accountancy or accounting is the system of recording, verifying, and reporting of the value of assets, liabilities, income, and expenses in the books of account to which debit and credit entries are chronologically posted to record changes in value ....
, commerce
Commerce

Commerce is a division of trade or production, costs, and pricing which deals with the Trade of goods and service from production, costs, and pricing to final consumer....
, marketing
Marketing

Marketing is defined by the American Marketing Association as the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large....
, business administration
Management

Management in business and human organization activity is simply the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals. Management comprises planning, organizing, staffing, leadership or directing, and Control an organization or effort for the purpose of accomplishing a goal....
, lobbying
Lobbying

Lobbying is the practice of influencing decisions made by government. It includes all attempts to influence legislators and officials, whether by other legislators, constituent or organized groups....
 and non- or not-for profit organizations.

Politician
Politician

A politician is an individual who is involved in influencing public decision making through the influence of politics or a person who influences the way a society is governed....
s often consult economists before enacting policy
Policy

A policy is typically described as a deliberate plan of action to guide decisions and achieve rational outcome. However, the term may also be used to denote what is actually done, even though it is unplanned....
, and many statesmen have academic degrees in economics (see List of politicians with economics training
List of politicians with economics training

This is a list of economists who are also politicians, statesman, central bankers, entrepreneurs, journalists, world leaders, and other notable persons with an academic background in economics....
).

By country

Economics graduate
Graduate

Graduate refers to someone who has been the subject of a Graduation. See also: Alumnus.It may also refer to:*...
s are employable in varying degrees, depending on the regional economic scenario and labour market conditions at the time for a given country. Apart from the specific understanding of the subject, employers value the skills of numeracy and analysis, the ability to communicate and the capacity to grasp broad issues which the graduates acquire at the university
University

A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education....
 or college
College

File:Government college for Women Dhoke Kala Khan.JPGCollege is a term most often used today to denote an education institution. More broadly, it can be the name of any group of collegialitys, for example, an electoral college, a College of Arms or the College of Cardinals....
. Whilst only a few economics graduates may be expected to become professional economists, many find it a base for entry into a career in finance
Finance

The field of finance refers to the concepts of time, money and risk and how they are interrelated. Banks are the main facilitators of funding through the provision of credit, although private equity, mutual funds, hedge funds, and other organizations have become important....
 – including accounting, insurance, tax and banking, or management
Management

Management in business and human organization activity is simply the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals. Management comprises planning, organizing, staffing, leadership or directing, and Control an organization or effort for the purpose of accomplishing a goal....
. A number of economics graduates from around the world have been successful in obtaining employment in a variety of major national and international firms in the financial and commercial sectors, and in manufacturing, retailing and IT, as well as in the public sector – for example, in the health and education sectors, or in government
Government

Government is the body within any organization that has the authority to make and the power to enforce laws, regulations, or rules. Typically, the government refers to a civil government -- local, provincial, or national -- but commercial, academic, religious, or other formal organizations are also administered by governing bodies....
 and politics
Politics

Politics is the process by which groups of people make decisions. The term is generally applied to behaviour within civil governments, but politics has been observed in all human group interactions, including corporation, academia, and religion institutions....
. Small numbers go on to undertake postgraduate studies, either in economics, research, teacher training or further qualifications in specialist areas.

United States

According to the United States Department of Labor there were 13,000 economists in the US with a median salary of roughly $72,780 with the top ten percent earning more than $129,170 annually. About 400 colleges and universities grant about 900 new Ph.D.
Doctor of Philosophy

Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated Ph.D. or PhD for the Latin , meaning "teacher of philosophy", is an postgraduate academic degree awarded by University....
s in economics each year. The type of academic degree, Bachelors, Masters or Doctorate degree had significant influence on an individuals job outlook and salary. While the overall expected job growth for economists remains below nation average, the demand for those with a Doctorate, especially those employed in the corporate sector, is expected to increase at a considerably faster pace. Incomes were highest for those in the private sector, followed by the federal government with academia and high schools paying the lowest incomes. Median salaries ranged from $45,000 for those with a Bachelor to $85,000 for those with a Ph.D. in economics. A recent and continuous study by PayScale.com showed Economic consultants with a Ph.D. had the overall highest median income for any group making $116,250, the median salaries for an assistant professor was $63,500, for an associate professor it lay at $67,000 and $85,000 for a full professor. The overall median income for doctorates in academia was $75,000 compared to $125,000 in consulting and $87,000 in banking.

Policy advising and analyzing of economic current trends are among the main responsibilities of economists in the United States. A recent study of U.S. economists by Daniel B. Klein and Charlotta Stern found that the responses show that most economists are supporters of safety regulations, gun control, redistribution, public schooling, and anti-discrimination laws. They are evenly mixed on personal choice issues, military action, and the minimum wage. Most economists oppose tighter immigration controls, government ownership of enterprise and tariffs. A study in the Southern Economic Journal found that "71 percent of American economists believe the distribution of income in the US
Income in the United States

Income in the United States is measured by the United States Department of Commerce either by Household income in the United States or Personal income in the United States....
 should be more equal
Income inequality in the United States

Income inequality in the United States is the extent to which Income in the United States, most commonly measured by Household income in the United States or Personal income in the United States, is distributed in an uneven manner....
, and 81 percent feel that the redistribution of income is a legitimate role for government." In terms of political orientation
Political ideologies in the United States

Political ideologies in the United States vary considerably. Persons in the U.S. generally classify themselves either as adhering to Liberalism in the United States, Conservatism in the United States or as moderates....
 63% identified as progressive and less than 20% as conservative/libertarian
Libertarianism

Libertarianism is a term used by a political spectrum of Political philosophy which seek to promote individual liberty and seek to minimize or abolish the state....
. with registered Democrats
Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major party contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party . It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world....
 outnumbering registered Republicans
Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major party contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party . It is often called the Grand Old Party or the GOP....
 2.5:1.

United Kingdom

The largest single professional grouping of economists in the UK are the more than 1000 members of the Government Economic Service
Government Economic Service

The Government Economic Service is a professional grouping of over 1000 UK civil service economists who work in 30 government departments and agencies....
, who work in 30 government departments and agencies.

Analysis of destination surveys for economics graduates from a number of selected top schools of economics in the United Kingdom (ranging from Newcastle University to the London School of Economics
London School of Economics

The London School of Economics and Political Science, more commonly referred to as The London School of Economics or LSE, is a specialist college of the University of London in London, England....
), shows nearly 80 per cent in employment six months after graduation – with a wide range of roles and employers, including regional, national and international organisations, across many sectors. This figure compares very favourably with the national picture, with 64 per cent of economics graduates in employment.

Famous economists

Adamsmith
Early economists were found in the Ancient Greek world, with Aristotle
Aristotle

Aristotle was a Greeks philosopher, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. He wrote on many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, Poetics , theater, music, logic, rhetoric, politics, government, ethics, biology and zoology....
 (382-322 BC) expounding in his work Topics on the topic of human production and further examining the topic in Politics. Xenophon
Xenophon

Xenophon , son of Gryllus, of the deme Erchia of Athens, also known as Xenophon of Athens and Xenophon of Thebes, was a soldier, mercenary and a contemporary and admirer of Socrates....
 (431-355) also wrote extensively on the Athenian economy in his work Economics. According to Praveen Attri "the pioneer economist of the world" was Chanakya
Chanakya

Chanakya was an adviser and a prime minister to the first Maurya Empire Emperor Chandragupta Maurya , and architect of his rise to power. Kautilya and Vishnugupta, the names by which the ancient Indian political treatise called the Arthasastra identifies its author, are traditionally identified with Chanakya....
  (c. 350-283 BC) an adviser and prime minister to the first Maurya Emperor Chandragupta from 340-293 BC.

In the 1700s, one of the first economic writers was Richard Cantillon
Richard Cantillon

Richard Cantillon , acknowledged by many historians as the first great economic "theorist", is an obscure character. This much is known: he was an Irishman with a Spanish name who lived in France most of his life....
 (1680-1734), who wrote the treatise Essai Sur la Nature du Commerce en Général. Early founders of economic concepts included the Scottish philosopher, economist, and historian. David Hume
David Hume

David Hume was a Scotland philosopher, economist, historian and a key figure in the history of Western philosophy and the Scottish Enlightenment....
 (1711-1776) and the so-called "classical economists": English demographer and political economist Thomas Malthus
Thomas Malthus

The The Reverend. Thomas Robert Malthus Royal Society was an England political economy and demography.His main contribution was to draw attention to the potential dangers of population growth:...
 (1766-1834), political economist David Ricardo
David Ricardo

David Ricardo was a political economy, often credited with systematizing economics, and was one of the most influential of the classical economicss, along with Thomas Malthus and Adam Smith....
 (1772–1823), and the Scottish moral philosopher and political economist Adam Smith
Adam Smith

Adam Smith was a Scotland Ethics and a pioneer of political economy. One of the key figures of the Scottish Enlightenment, Smith is the author of The Theory of Moral Sentiments and The Wealth of Nations....
 (1723-1790). Other early developers of economic concepts include the British philosopher, political economist John Stuart Mill
John Stuart Mill

John Stuart Mill , United Kingdom philosopher, political economy, civil servant and Parliament of the United Kingdom, was an influential liberalism thinker of the 19th century....
 (1806–1873); French economist and free trade advocate Jean-Baptiste Say
Jean-Baptiste Say

Jean-Baptiste Say was a France economics and businessman. He had classically liberal views and argued in favour of competition, free trade, and lifting restraints on business....
 (1767–1832); Prussian philosopher, political economist, and revolutionary Karl Marx
Karl Marx

Karl Heinrich Marx was a Germanphilosophy, political economy, historian, sociologist, humanism, political theorist and revolutionary credited as the founder of communism....
 (1818–1883); French classical liberal theorist and political economist, Frédéric Bastiat
Frédéric Bastiat

Claude Fr?d?ric Bastiat was a French classical liberalism theorist, political economy, and member of the French assembly....
 (1801–1850); and English economist and logician William Stanley Jevons
William Stanley Jevons

William Stanley Jevons , England economist and logician, was born in Liverpool. He expounded in his book The Theory of Political Economy the "final" utility theory of value....
 (1835-1882).

Founders of important economic concepts who were alive during the 20th century include the Austrian economist Eugen von Böhm-Bawerk
Eugen von Böhm-Bawerk

Eugen Ritter von B?hm-Bawerk was an Austrian Empire economist who made important contributions to the development of Austrian School. Trained in the University of Vienna as a lawyer where he read Carl Menger's Principles of Economics. Though he never studied under Menger, he quickly became an adherent of his theories....
 (1851–1914); the founder of the Austrian School
Austrian School

The Austrian School is a Heterodox economics school of economics. It emphasizes the spontaneous organizing power of the price mechanism, holds that the complexity of subjective human choices makes mathematical modelling of the evolving market extremely difficult and therefore advocates a laissez faire approach to the economy....
 of economics, Carl Menger
Carl Menger

Carl Menger was the founder of the Austrian School of economics, famous for contributing to the development of the theory of marginal utility that refuted the cost-of-production theories of value developed by the classical economics such as Adam Smith and David Ricardo....
 (1840–1921); British economist, developer of Keynesian economics
Keynesian economics

Keynesian economics The theories forming the basis of Keynesian economics were first presented in The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money, published in 1936....
, and influential founders of modern theoretical macroeconomics
Macroeconomics

Macroeconomics is a branch of economics that deals with the performance, structure, and behavior of a national or regional economy as a whole....
 John Maynard Keynes (1883–1946); American economist, health campaigner, and eugenicist Irving Fisher
Irving Fisher

Irving Fisher was an United States Economics, health campaigner, and Eugenics, and one of the earliest American Neoclassical economics and, although he was perhaps the first celebrity economist, his reputation today is probably higher than it was in his lifetime....
 (1867-1947); German economist and proponent of the social market economy
Social market economy

The social market economy was the main Economic system used in Western Europe and Northern Europe during the Cold War era. It originated in West Germany, and it is known as Soziale Marktwirtschaft in German language....
, Wilhelm Röpke
Wilhelm Röpke

Wilhelm R?pke was one of the most important spiritual fathers of the German social market economy.For R?pke , rights, moral habits , and social norms and values were decisive elements with which not the market, but the state and central bank continually need to be concerned....
 (1899-1966); American economists, Nobel Prize Laureate and proponent of the Tobit model
Tobit model

The Tobit Model is an econometric, biometric model proposed by James Tobin to describethe relationship between a non-negative dependent variable...
, James Tobin
James Tobin

James Tobin was an United States economist. Tobin advocated and developed the ideas of Keynesian economics. He believed that governments should intervene in the economy in order to stabilize output and avoid recessions....
 (1918-2002); Austrian-British member of the Austrian School of economics Friedrich Hayek
Friedrich Hayek

Friedrich August von Hayek Order of the Companions of Honour was an Austrian economist and philosopher known throughout the world for his defense of classical liberalism and free market capitalism against socialism and collectivism thought....
 (1899-1992); and American economist, public intellectual, and laissez-faire capitalism advocate Milton Friedman
Milton Friedman

Milton Friedman was an United States economist, statistician and public intellectual, and a recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences....
 (1912–2006).

Current well-known American economists include 2008 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics winner Paul Krugman
Paul Krugman

Paul Robin Krugman is an United States economist, columnist, and author. He is a professor of economics and international affairs at Princeton University, a centenary professor at the London School of Economics, and an op-ed columnist for The New York Times....
, a public intellectual, advocate of modern liberal policies, known for his descriptions of rising inequality; Jeffrey Sachs
Jeffrey Sachs

Jeffrey David Sachs is an United States economist and Director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University. He is also the Quetelet Professor of Sustainable Development at Columbia's School of International and Public Affairs and a Professor of Health Policy and Management at Columbia's Columbia Mailman School of Public Health....
, former United Nations
United Nations

The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, Social change, human rights and achieving world peace....
 economic adviser to the Secretary-General
United Nations Secretary-General

The Secretary-General of the United Nations is the head of the United Nations Secretariat, one of the principal organs of the United Nations. The Secretary-General also acts as the de facto spokesperson and leader of the United Nations....
 and author of The End of Poverty
The End of Poverty

The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Our Time is a 2005 book by American economist Jeffrey Sachs. It was a The New York Times New York Times Best Seller list....
; and Alan Greenspan
Alan Greenspan

Alan Greenspan is an United States economist and was the Chairman of the Federal Reserve of the United States from 1987 to 2006. He currently works as a private advisor and providing consulting for firms through his company, Greenspan Associates LLC....
, the former chairman
Chairman of the Federal Reserve

The Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System is the head of the Central bank of the United States. Known colloquially as "Chairman of the Fed," or in market circles "Fed Chair" or "Fed Chief"....
 of the Federal Reserve
Federal Reserve System

The Federal Reserve System is the central banking system of the United States. Created in 1913 by the enactment of the Federal Reserve Act, it is a quasi-public banking system that comprises the presidentially appointed Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System in Washington, D.C.; the Federal Open Market Committee; twelve regiona...
.

Criticisms of economists


It is often the case that, in contemporary Western society, economists are on occasion rebuked, along with the discipline of economics in general. Such criticisms pertain to:

Limited predictive abilities


Economists (especially those specialising in the macroeconomy) often make predictions concerning the future health of a specific country's or region's economy. For instance, an economist in x year may say that in y year, a country's economic growth rate may improve or lessen, its rate of inflation may fall or rise, or its balance of payments may worsen or be enhanced.

However, not all predictions on the macroeconomy are wholly accurate. In reference to the 2008 economic crisis
Global financial crisis of 2008–2009

File:EESA128.pngThe global financial crisis of 2008?2009 emerged in September 2008 with the failure, merger, or conservatorship of several large United States-based financial firms and spread with the insolvency of additional companies, governments in Europe, recession, and declining stock market prices around the globe....
, relatively few economists in the world were able to predict the timing or magnitude of such an occurence. The reason for this could be the extent of a complex multiplicity of variables involved in the macroeconomy of a country. As economics is a social science and thus focuses on humanity as the core of its study, and since human behavior is less predictable where small numbers of humans are involved, a country's or region's macroeconomy is commonly difficult to analyse. For example, while economists could not predict the timing of the crisis nor its magnitude, economists had been predicting for at least the previous decade that the government-sponsored mortgage companies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, were lending irresponsibly and in danger of requiring a massive government bailout.

Disputes among various economic schools of thought


Another reason for the common rebuke of economists is a perceived lack of universal principles among economists.

For instance, if one examines microeconomic theory, mainstream economists would concur with the notion of market failure. However, an Austrian economist would not. In macroeconomic theory, mainstream economists generally see merit on the concept of national accounting (and subset concepts, such as Gross Domestic Product, Net Domestic Product, Gross National Product, Gross Value Added, etc.) However, economists of other schools do not necessarily endorse the notion of national accounting. Moreover, the correct method of combating recession is also a contentious point among economists. To a Keynesian, a government should raise its spending during a period of negative economic growth, in order to stimulate demand in an economy. To an Austrian, a government should do nothing during a period of recession, since to Austrian economists a recession is a natural correction in an economy that occurs would occur infrequently and be an anomaly in the general pattern of an economy.

Some deem economics to be a "false" science due to these persistent disputes, since it is felt without consensus on issues there can be little advancement of general economic understanding. In other sciences, it is the norm for generally accepted principles to exist among scientists. For example, few geologists dispute the notion of plate tectonics. Few astronomers dispute that Alpha Centauri is the nearest star to Earth's solar system.

In response to these criticisms, some say that contention within a discipline is healthy and thus something to be encouraged. However, in other sciences, contention acts in challenging the status quo and establishing a new orthodoxy based on compelling and convincing evidence. Furthermore, another response to the issue of disunity among economists is that comparisons between natural sciences and social sciences are unwise, given that human conduct is unpredictable, and not akin to the study of inert and non-sapient subjects.

Some view the topic of disagreement in that politics and economics are inherently linked. A person's economic views may often be shaped by his or her political beliefs. Additionally, the basic economic problem concerns how resources should be allocated, for whom they should be allocated to, and what should be produced from the finite resources at a community's disposal. Accordingly, controversy arises from the basic economic problem, since differing opinions can surface relating to how a society allocates its limited resources.

See also

  • List of economists
    List of economists

    This is an alphabetical list of notable economists, that is, experts in the social science of economics. There is also a separate list of politicians with economics training....
  • Nobel Prize in Economics
    Nobel Prize in Economics

    The Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, officially named The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel , is an award for outstanding contributions in the field of economics and is generally considered one of the most prestigious awards in that field....
  • Chief economist
    Chief economist

    The Chief Economist is a single position job class having primary responsibility for the development, coordination, and production of economic and financial analysis....
  • Forensic economist
  • Heterodox economics
    Heterodox economics

    Heterodox economics refers to the approaches, or Economic schools of thought, that are considered outside of mainstream economics, that is, Orthodoxy#Critical uses economics....
  • Mainstream economics
    Mainstream economics

    Mainstream economics is a loose term used to refer to the non-heterodox economics economics taught in prominent universities. It is most closely associated with neoclassical economics....
  • Neoclassical economics
    Neoclassical economics

    Neoclassical economics is a term variously used for approaches to economics focusing on the determination of prices, outputs, and income distribution s in markets through supply and demand, often as mediated through a hypothesized maximization of income-constrained utility by individuals and of cost-constrained profits of firms employing avai...