Why are buffalo almost extinct but cattle so plentiful? Do government deficits mortgage our children’s future? Does an increase »Æ¹Ï¾«Æ·minimum wage help unskilled workers? These are some of the questions economists try to answer.
Economics students learn to build, test and revise models of behavior — of consumers, firms, workers and the government — and examine how these agents interact in markets, both at the individual level in microeconomic analysis and at the economy-wide level in macroeconomic analysis.
By integrating theory, analytical models, data, quantitative research methods and public policy issues, the economics professors at Kenyon help students understand and predict social behavior »Æ¹Ï¾«Æ·world around them. Students then are able to analyze important social problems like unemployment, pollution, race and gender discrimination, and inflation. This analysis allows them to intelligently evaluate public-policy proposals that are offered as solutions to these problems.