Fifty Economic Fallacies Exposed: Second Edition

Abstract

Whilst it is impossible to argue that the earth is flat without fearing ridicule, fallacies in economics are widespread. Such fallacies pervade the intellectual sphere and even influence policy. Professor Geoffrey Wood of the University of Buckingham exposes such popular economic fallacies in this revised edition of Fifty Economic Fallacies Exposed. Professor Wood looks at, for example, the supposed dangers of free trade, the abilities of governments to control the economy, the effects of government regulation and whether millions of jobs depend on our continued membership of the European Union. These lucid and stimulating articles are invaluable to students struggling to master some of the complexities of economic theory and its applications, who often find that the most effective way to learn economic analysis is to see such fallacies exposed. It is a text particularly suitable for first-year economic students, complementing existing textbooks as it does, and clarifying basic concepts in economics while demonstrating the practical uses of economic theory. Contents: 1. Regulation and markets 2. International trade and finance 3. Inflation 4. Fiscal policy: taxation 5. Fiscal policy: government spending 6. Monetary policy: theory 7. Monetary policy: practice 8. Cost, price and value 9. Labour markets