The Perception and Opinion of Non-Economic Majors on Economics

Abstract

Economic education experiences only low significance in German secondary education curricula, academia is often the first formal encounter with economic theory and thinking. This applies not only to students majoring in economics but also to the much larger group of non-economic majors. This article investigates whether the common factors that motivate students of economics to study also hold for non-economic majors. Using data from a survey carried out among business majors we perform an estimation to explore the reasons for an increased interest in economics based on the perception of and opinion on economics as field of study. We identify the influence of students’ opinion on economics to be in line with the related research. Future income expectations and job perspectives are relevant motivational factors for non-economic majors to study economics. This is also true for the students’ perception of economic teaching. Marginal effects are calculated to gain more detailed insights into the most significant identified factors. The found influences do not only hold on average but also show a predominantly consistent pattern when moving by one point on the Likert-scale. Our results of this first analysis enable multiple approaches for future research on the matter.