The strength of economics is that it offers an effective way of understanding at a variety of behaviors and social problems. The study of economics covers topics ranging from explaining personal decisions to choosing policies for promoting the welfare of society. Economics is not about how to invest in the stock market or how to manage a corporation; it isn't even limited to just the study of markets or businesses. Economic analysis can be applied to politics, crime and punishment, the environment, taxes, education, health, safety, insurance, finance, labor, product quality, international trade, and other areas.
An undergraduate education in economics enables individuals to better understand many issues and, ultimately, to help resolve them. What promotes economic growth? What causes inflation and unemployment? If the U.S. opens trade with Mexico, who will gain and who will lose? Why is OPEC having such a hard time raising oil prices? Is it sensible to worry about the national debt? Who is helped and who is hurt by a tariff? Why don't more people vote? What are the best ways to clean up the environment? What does education contribute to prosperity? Does lowering prices help the poor? Is the common law efficient? Why did the Soviet economy fail? Should people worry that no one pilots the market system which they rely on for their daily bread, housing, clothing, and medicine? Who pays for improvements in working conditions ?the owners of firms or workers? What effect do product liability laws have on the frequency and cost of accidents?
Economics should be an attractive major to those who are curious about social phenomena and who are unwilling to accept the superficial answers that often dominate public discussions. The economics faculty at Emory & Henry teaches the traditional curriculum taught by the large majority of undergraduate programs. Students begin with two principles courses, move to intermediate microeconomic and macroeconomic theory, and then pursue advanced course work in such fields of economics as law and economics, public finance, industrial organization and regulation, international economics, environmental economics, and labor economics. The emphasis in all courses is on explaining why social phenomena occur and what the effects of private behavior and government policies are.
However, because economics is in part about economic policies, courses also include the appraisal of market behavior and government policies using the criteria of efficiency and, to a lesser extent, equity. The economics
faculty believes that markets work (i.e., are reasonably efficient) much of the time; but not in all cases. The economics faculty believes that government can serve a useful role when markets fail. However, we believe that both markets and government can be imperfect instruments for managing society's scarce resources to achieve it objectives.
Emory & Henry College
P.O. Box 947
Emory, VA 24327-0947
