Economics for Beginners Understanding the Basics

Economics is a complex subject filled with a maze of confusing terms and details which can be difficult to explain. Even economists have trouble defining exactly what economics means. Yet, there is no doubt that the economy and the things we learn through economics affects our everyday lives. In short, economics is the study of how people and groups of people use their resources. Money certainly is one of those resources, but other things can play a role in economics as well. In an attempt to clarify all this, lets take a look at the basics of economics and why you might consider studying this complex field. The Field of Economics Economics is divided into two general categories: microeconomics and macroeconomics. One looks at the individual markets while the other looks at an entire economy. From there, we can narrow economics into a number of subfields of study. These include econometrics, economic development, agricultural economics, urban economics, and much more. If you have an interest in how the world works and how financial markets or industry outlooks affect the economy, you might consider studying economics. Its a fascinating field and has career potential in a number of disciplines, from finance to sales to the government.   Two Essential Concepts of Economics Much of what we study in economics has to do with money and the markets. What are people willing to pay for something? Is one industry doing better than another? What is the economic future of the country or world? These are important questions economists examine and it comes with a few basic terms. Supply and Demand is one of the first things we learn in economics. Supply speaks to the quantity  of something thats available for sale while demand refers to the willingness to purchase it. If the supply is higher than the demand, the market is thrown off balance and costs typically decrease. The opposite is true if demand is greater than the supply available because that commodity  is more desirable and harder to obtain. Elasticity is another key concept in economics. Essentially, here were talking about how much the price of something can fluctuate before it has a negative impact on sales. Elasticity ties into demand and some products and services are more elastic than others. Understanding the Financial Markets As you might expect, many of the factors that play into economics have to do with the financial markets. This is also a complicated matter with many subtopics that you can dive into. First and foremost, its important to understand how prices are set in a market economy. At the heart of this is information and what is known as a contingent contract. Essentially, this type of arrangement places stipulations on the price paid based on external factors: if X happens, then Ill pay this much. One question that many investors have is What happens to my money when stock prices go down? The answer is not easy, and before you dive into the stock market, its essential that you know how it works. To further complicate things, economic situations like a recession can throw many things off. For instance, just because an economy goes into recession, doesnt mean that prices will fall. In fact, its the opposite for things like housing. Quite often, prices go up because supply is down and demand is up. This rise in prices is known as inflation. Interest rates and exchange rates also cause fluctuations in the markets. You will often hear economists express concern over these.  When interest rates go down, people tend to buy and borrow more. Yet, this can cause interest rates to rise in the end. Exchange rates refer to how the currency of one country compares to those of another. These are key components in the global economy. Other terms youll hear in reference to the markets are opportunity costs, cost measures, and  monopolies. Each is a key element in understanding the overall economic forecast. Measuring Economic Growth and Decline Whether on a national or global scale, measuring the health of the economy is no easy feat. Nationally, we use terms like GDP, which stands for Gross Domestic Product. This refers to the market value of a countrys goods and services. Each countrys GDP is analyzed by entities like the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF). There is also much discussion these days about globalization. The concerns over countries like the U.S. outsourcing jobs has many fearing a higher unemployment rate and sagging economy. Yet, some argue that advancements in technology do just as much for employment as globalization. Every now and then, you will hear government officials discussing fiscal stimulus. This is one theory for encouraging economic growth, particularly in tougher times. But again, its really not as easy as creating jobs that will lead to more consumer spending. As with all things in economics, nothing is simple. That is precisely why this topic is so intriguing and keeps economists up late at night. Predicting the wealth of a nation or the world is no easier than predicting your own gains 10 or 15 years into the future. There are too many variables that come into play, which is why economics is an endless field of study.

The New York City Department Of Consumer Affairs - 1664 Words

1. Introduction In 1992, the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs (NYCDCA) conducted a study where it was found that women paid, on average, 25% more for the same haircut as men. Subsequently, in 1994, the state of California estimated that women paid an annual gender tax of approximately $1,351 for the same services as men and therefore, in 1995, California decided to introduce a bill in order to protect consumers from price discrimination for services, for example from hair salons, however, not for gender pricing of goods . These examples demonstrate that â€Å"pink taxes† seem to exist for a long period of time and gives the impression to persist. In this essay, I am going to investigate, provide evidence and analyse this exact issue using my own economic awareness and the data I found while researching this matter. 2. Gender Price Gap Evidence and Economic Theory More recently, in 2015, NYCDCA looked at 794 products from 35 different categories and found that women’s products are, on average, 7% more expensive than similar products for men. Also, the gender price gap seems to be more evident on beauty products, clothes and toys. This is supported by a recent research conducted in Britain by The Times which found that products targeted to women are, on average, 37% more expensive than similar products targeted to men. Figure 1: Some of The Times’ study findings Figure 1 shows some of the price discrepancies found between genders in The Times’ research. ForShow MoreRelatedDiscrimination Is A Fair Share Of Discrimination1469 Words   |  6 Pagesbe defined as â€Å". . . the extra amount women are charged for certain products or services. Things like dry cleaning, personal care products, and vehicle maintenance† (Elliot Sec. 1). 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Media Influence on Stereotypes Free Essays

string(61) " doing less work and receiving the same credit as Harold is\." What you see is not always what you get In a society highly influenced by the media, stereotypes are used sometimes in a comedic way. In Harold and Kumar go to White Castle one of the main themes the movie is poking fun at is how stereotypes affect the lives of the two main characters one being of Korean decent and the other Indian. The movie opens introducing the first character Harold. We will write a custom essay sample on Media Influence on Stereotypes or any similar topic only for you Order Now The audience sees that he is an Asian male working in a cubicle for a banking company. The scene turns to Harold’s co-workers who are both white in an office that is nicer and bigger to that of Harold, discussing how they are going to have fun and party for the weekend when one of them has much work to do, so one of them suggests having someone else do it. The scene gives the impression that the two white co-workers are the main characters of the movie as the introductory scene shows primarily the two co-workers and have the most dialogue in the brief intro; however, later the audience will notice that they are not seen again until the end of the movie.What this scene is shown to do is to make humor out of a normalized stereotype of the Asian American group. As this scene will be analyzed, the normalized stereotypes of Asians in society is highly recognizable in American culture and media, as it negatively privileges the Asian group while obscuring Americans insecurity of their own part in society. In today’s world most people are born with an identity al ready established for them. Generalized perceptions or a stereotype of a single group has instigated prejudice.With cultural representations already determined by the outside world, many strive to break such representations in order to form their own identity and not what was given to them. It has increasingly more difficult for one to break such representation due to factors in society normalizing these representations with the use of the media. The media has become a powerful tool in promoting such representation of groups. Stereotypes surround the whole world we live in and are unavoidable.No matter what we do, depending on our personality, attire, or even our hairstyle everyone fits into some sort of stereotype even by a little. The definition of a stereotype is a standardized conception or idea of a group of people (Hurst). Even though most stereotypes aren’t true there is a reason why they exist and continue to thrive. Stereotypes have flourished continually as the world has become more and more globalized. Especially in the United States one of the most ethnically diverse countries in the world.As stereotypes exist they have consequently affected the way that a particular individual or group lives in society. One particular representation that will be analyzed is the stereotypes of Asians in popular media, the movie Harold and Kumar go to White Castle and along with my own personal experiences being in the group within Asian Stereotypes will be used to assess the topic. Back at the beginning of this paper an introductory scene was described of the film Harold and Kumar go to White Castle. Even though the scene is only about a few minutes many representations can be noted.The scene implements key normalized stereotypes seen in the public eye. The particular stereotype of Asian group has been connected to the term â€Å"Model Minority† which applies positive traits as a stereotype. The traits include qualities such as being hardworking, intelligent, studious, productive, and also inoffensive people. Also known to increase their social status through merit. The biggest opposition to the view is that it exaggerates the success of Asians. This false empowerment given by the stereotype covers up true problems that are faced by the Asian community.The belief that Asians are harder workers and thus leading to higher earning jobs has led to a more difficult level of climbing the work ladder into higher wage jobs, otherwise known as the glass ceiling phenomena: The definition â€Å"The Glass Ceiling† refers to an invisible barrier that limits the level to which a woman or another member of a demographic minority can advance within the hierarchy in an organization. It often is a barrier that confronts Ethnic Americans in addition to women when trying to reach upper management levels in many companies (Hester, 2007)Corresponding to the glass ceiling phenomena, th e model minority stereotype has been believed to been the cause that Asians must acquire more education and work more hours than their white counterparts to earn the same amount of money. We will go back to the same scene mentioned at the beginning and continue. The scene described before shows Harold the Korean descendent character working tenaciously in his cubicle filling out forms and papers and he is then approached by the two co-workers mentioned earlier that were contemplating how they are going to party over the weekend when they have work to do.Afterwards it shows the two co-workers giving Harold a pile of their papers and folders then persuading Harold to do the work for them with Harold then unenthusiastically accepting the task. Afterwards the scene shows the two co-workers in this short dialogue Co-worker 1: â€Å"Wow! That was amazing; I can’t believe how easy that was† Co-worker 2: â€Å"Dude, how do you think I get all my shit done? Those Asian guys just love crunching numbers. You probably just made his weekend. (Both leave laughing)Then the camera pans over to Harold as he shouts â€Å"Fuck! † The co-workers connect the traits of the stereotype to what they just did and sarcastically believe they did Harold a favor. What can be shown here in relation to the model minority stereotype is that Harold now has to do more work than is required of him for his white counterparts. However doing this extra work will not earn him more money or any merit while his white counterpart will be doing less work and receiving the same credit as Harold is. You read "Media Influence on Stereotypes" in category "Papers" The dialogue shows that the co-workers jokingly believe they are doing Harold a favor due to his traits which allows him to do such tasks; however, the ending of the scene shows Harold shouting â€Å"Fuck! † which can be seen as epitomizing reaction of Asians frustrations towards how this stereotype has affected them. The scene shows rebellion towards the label of the model minority. This shows that even though the model minority label credits Asians with strong qualities in the end negatively affects them.What does the scene show about the white co-workers? The scene shows the co-workers of Harold irresponsibly passing off their work for someone else to do. This characteristic shows laziness in the white co-workers. This part of the scene was a way to laugh at both Harold and also the two white co-workers. Why was this funny? The thing is that it’s sometimes true that these kinds of situations occur that is where the audience connects the humor in the situation. The scene reveals an abnormal of how Americans are usually viewed.Americans have been known to be hard workers through fighting for freedom through the revolution to rising to one of the most powerful countries of the 20th century. Time goes on being on top, strong qualities can be seen to be fading away. The polarity is seen as Harold the Korean is hard working while the white co-workers are not. In the scene the white co-workers are laughing away semi-sadistically as they leave the building after taking advantage of their Asian co-worker. The significance of this is that the laughing disguises the white co-workers insecurity of their own work ethic is not as strong.Using the model minority stereotype has in a way been used to exploit as shown in the scene with the white co-workers using the stereotype to use Harold as a work horse. Even though the two white co-workers can’t represent Americans it can represent a whole different stereotype to be uncovered America has had a history in dealing with Asians in the past. Around the 19th century a term known as the â€Å"Yellow Peril† developed as a fear to the increasing number of Asians would immigrate to the United States and would fill the country with foreign culture, speech, and even take away jobs from Americans.The fear that the hard working Asians would take away American’s position in the working world, a satire to the response of that fear is shown in the scene as it shows Harold has been used as a crutch to hold up the co-workers in power. In Amitava Kumar’s Language, a violent example is seen when Kumar describes the murder of Vincent Chin who was murdered by two white autoworkers in Detroit. During so he was called a â€Å"Jap† and told â€Å"It’s because of you motherfuckers that we’re out of work. â₠¬ (p. 05, Critical Encounters With Text). Chin was murdered due to his ethnic identity which in some correlation was believed to put those auto workers out of work. Chin was murdered because in the view of the autoworkers was that he was somehow associated with the ethnic group that had replaced them. It could be that the people who replaced them were more efficient, harder working, or demanded lower wages. Whatever it was, they did not confront the face they themselves had anything to do with the fact they were out of work.Which is something that has become a problem in society is that people blame each other and do not choose to confront how they could have caused a certain event. The model minority stereotype has also affected my life personally being of Korean decent. Being part of the model minority stereotypes has caused to build expectations since we are expected to live up to our peers which fall into that category. In elementary school, I remember asking my teachers for help and noticed some reluctance in doing so. Then I saw my teachers helping other students seeming more inclined to help.This situation made it seem to me that I had to work a little harder than my peers in school. In high school, some teachers took personal offence if it seemed as I underperformed on an assignment believing I wasn’t trying or was being lazy. Even though if I tried hard and didn’t do well it was disappointing to see teachers lose faith due to a misinterpretation. All of these things were built upon the general assumptions brought on by the model minority stereotype, has made it so it was abnormal to not follow the trend of such a view.Assumptions are natural impulses that most cannot avoid to do. As human beings no matter what we see, there is some sort of impression that most of us come towards even without knowing the person. Some of these assumptions are guided from varying reasons including friends, family, face, hair, ethnicity, attire, gender, and the media. We analyzed how a particular scene in the film Harold and Kumar go to White Castle exemplifies a generalized assumption. Also a brief personal account on how the stereotype has affected me.Stereotypes create unfairness as it classifies groups based on assumptions. Awareness of the consequences of stereotypes will help the problems associated with it. Stereotypes will continue to die down as long as the world is becoming more and more globalized. So therefore groups and cultures in America will become more connected with each other as time goes on causing familiarity, bringing down assumptions on a group and with this the concept, true equal opportunity will continue to become stronger.Works Cited Jon Hurwitz, Danny Leiner, Hayden Schlossberg . Harold and Kumar go to White Castle. (2001) †¢ Amitava Kumar. â€Å"Language,† by, reprinted from Passport Photos by permission of University of California Press. (2000) †¢ Hurst, Charles E. Social Inequality: Forms, Causes, and Consequences. 6. Boston: Pearson Education, Inc, 2007 †¢ Ruth Hester, published May 21, 2007 http://www. associatedcontent. com/article/248276/the_glass_ceiling_and_its_effect_on. html? cat=3 †¢ Amy Kashiwabara, 1996 edu/MRC/Amydoc.html†http://www. lib. berkeley. edu/MRC/Amydoc. html How to cite Media Influence on Stereotypes, Papers