E-Book Overview
This is the first textbook in microeconomics written exclusively for MBA students. McKenzie/Lee minimizes attention to mathematics and maximizes attention to intuitive economic thinking. The text is structured clearly and accessibly: Part I of each chapter outlines the basic theory and Part II applies this basic theory to management issues. 'Perspective' sections in each chapter provide a new line of argument or different take on a business or policy issue, and carefully chosen topics and review questions are designed to spark lively and instructive debates. Throughout the book, McKenzie and Lee aim to infuse students with the economic way of thinking in the context of a host of problems that MBA students, as future managers of real-world firms, will find relevant to their career goals.
E-Book Content
CHAPTER 1
Microeconomics, A Way of Thinking about Business In economics in particular, education seems to be largely a matter of unlearning and “disteaching” rather than constructive action. A onc- famous American humorist observed that “it’s not ignorance that does so much damage; it’s knowin’ so darn much that ain’t so.” . . .It seems that the hardest things to learn and to teach are things that everyone already knows. Frank H. Knight
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rank Knight was a wise professor. Through long years of teaching he realized that students, even those in advanced business programs, beginning a study of economics, no matter the level, face a difficult task. They must learn many things in a rigorous manner that, on reflection and with experience, amount to common sense. To do that, however, they must set aside —or “unlearn”—many pre-conceived notions of the economy and of the course itself. The problem of “unlearning” can be especially acute for MBA students who are returning to a university after years of experience in industry. People in business rightfully focu