ECON 251(F,S) Price and Allocation Theory

Study of the determination of relative prices and their importance in shaping the allocation of resources and the distribution of income. Subjects include: behavior of households in a variety of settings, such as buying goods and services, saving, and labor supply; behavior of firms in various kinds of markets; results of competitive and noncompetitive markets in goods, labor, land, and capital; market failure; government policies as sources of and responses to market failure; welfare criteria; limitations of mainstream analysis. Instructors may use elementary calculus in assigned readings, lectures, exams, and problems. Prerequisites: Economics 101 and any 200-level economics course. In the spring semester, section one of this course will employ a somewhat more mathematical exposition of microtheory.

Hour:  First Semester: BRADBURD Second Semester: BRAINERD