What is Microeconomics? - How Others Define Microeconomics
Perhaps the simplest answer to the question "What is Microeconomics?" can be found at West Valley College. They state that "Microeconomics deals with the decision making and market results of consumers and firms".The Economist's Dictionary of Economics defines Microeconomics as "The study of economics at the level of individual consumers, groups of consumers, or firms... The general concern of microeconomics is the efficient allocation of scarce resources between alternative uses but more specifically it involves the determination of price through the optimizing behaviour of economic agents, with consumers maximizing utility and firms maximizing profit."
What Is Microeconomics? How I Would Define It
Roughly speaking, microeconomics deals with economics decisions made at a low, or micro, level. More precisely, I would define microeconomics as "the analysis of the decisions made by individuals and groups, the factors that affect those decisions, and how those decisions effect others".Example of a Microeconomic Question
How does the change of a price of good influence a family's purchasing decisions? If my wages rise, will I be inclined to work more hours or less hours? Contrast this with Macroeconomics, which deals with questions of a large scope, such as how does a change in interest rates influence national savings?
More on Microeconomics
Economics at About.com has a number of useful resources on Microeconomics:The Microeconomics Resource Center has articles on a great deal of microeconomics topics, such as elasticity and opportunity costs.
Microeconomics Tips and Tricks has a number of useful links for students who are looking to ace their next microeconomics test or assignment. The page Resources for Microeconomics also contains a great deal of valuable microeconomics information.
