Microeconomics Basics

Summary

There are different types of economies in today’s world. A pure market economy (also known as laissez-faire capitalism) is an economy in which individual households and firms determine the allocation of resources and the government plays an extremely limited role, primarily in enforcing property rights through a legal system and providing for a common defense. A centrally planned economy (also known as a command economy) is one in which a single individual or small group of individuals determines the allocation of resources, and individual firms and households have little say over what is produced, how goods are produced, and the distribution of these goods. A mixed economy is one in which government plays a more active role in the market process, including regulation, standardization, taxation, and income redistribution. Households and firms still have some control over what is produced, how goods are produced, and the distribution of those goods; however, the government also influences these decisions.