为了适应经济全球化的发展趋势,满足国内广大读者了解、学习和借鉴国外先进的管理经验和掌握经济理论前沿动态的需要,清华大学出版社与国外著名出版公司合作影印出版一系列英文版经济管理方面的图书。我们所选择的图书,基本上是已再版多次、在国外深受欢迎并被广泛采用的优秀教材,是该领域中具有*性的经典之作。
preface
“Economicsisastudyofmankindintheordinarybusinessoflife.”SowroteAlfredMarshall,thegreat19th-centuryeconomist,inhistextbook,
PrinciplesofEconomics.Althoughwehavelearnedmuchabouttheeconomy
sinceMarshall’stime,thisdefinitionofeconomicsisastruetodayasit
wasin1890,whenthefirsteditionofhistextwaspublished.
Whyshouldyou,asastudentatthebeginningofthe21stcentury,embarkon
thestudyofeconomics?Therearethreereasons.
Thefirstreasontostudyeconomicsisthatitwillhelpyouunderstandthe
worldinwhichyoulive.Therearemanyquestionsabouttheeconomythatmight
sparkyourcuriosity.WhyareapartmentssohardtofindinNewYorkCity?Why
doairlineschargelessforaround-tripticketifthetravelerstaysoveraSaturday
night?WhyisJohnnyDepppaidsomuchtostarinmovies?Whyarelivingstan-
dardssomeagerinmanyAfricancountries?Whydosomecountrieshavehigh
ratesofinflationwhileothershavestableprices?Whyarejobseasytofindin
someyearsandhardtofindinothers?Thesearejustafewofthequestionsthata
courseineconomicswillhelpyouanswer.
Thesecondreasontostudyeconomicsisthatitwillmakeyouamoreastute
participantintheeconomy.Asyougoaboutyourlife,youmakemanyeconomic
decisions.Whileyouareastudent,youdecidehowmanyyearstostayinschool.
Onceyoutakeajob,youdecidehowmuchofyourincometospend,howmuch
tosave,andhowtoinvestyoursavings.Somedayyoumayfindyourselfrunning
asmallbusinessoralargecorporation,andyouwilldecidewhatpricestocharge
foryourproducts.Theinsightsdevelopedinthecomingchapterswillgiveyou
anewperspectiveonhowbesttomakethesedecisions.Studyingeconomicswill
notbyitselfmakeyourich,butitwillgiveyousometoolsthatmayhelpinthat
endeavor.
Thethirdreasontostudyeconomicsisthatitwillgiveyouabetterunderstand-
ingofboththepotentialandthelimitsofeconomicpolicy.Economicquestions
arealwaysonthemindsofpolicymakersinmayors’offices,governors’mansions,
andtheWhiteHouse.Whataretheburdensassociatedwithalternativeformsof
taxation?Whataretheeffectsoffreetradewithothercountries?Whatisthebest
waytoprotecttheenvironment?Howdoesagovernmentbudgetdeficitaffect
theeconomy?Asavoter,youhelpchoosethepoliciesthatguidetheallocationof
society’sresources.Anunderstandingofeconomicswillhelpyoucarryoutthat
responsibility.Andwhoknows:Perhapssomedayyouwillendupasoneofthose
policymakersyourself.
Thus,theprinciplesofeconomicscanbeappliedinmanyoflife’ssituations.
Whetherthefuturefindsyoureadingthenewspaper,runningabusiness,orsit-
tingintheOvalOffice,youwillbegladthatyoustudiedeconomics.
N.GregoryMankiwDecember2010
ToCatherine,Nicholas,andPeter,
myothercontributionstothenextgeneration
author
iv
aboutthe
N.GregoryMankiwisprofessorofeconomicsat
HarvardUniversity.Asastudent,hestudiedeconomics
atPrincetonUniversityandMIT.Asateacher,
hehastaughtmacroeconomics,microeconomics,
statistics,andprinciplesofeconomics.Heeven
spentonesummerlongagoasasailinginstructor
onLongBeachIsland.
ProfessorMankiwisaprolificwriterandaregular
participantinacademicandpolicydebates.His
workhasbeenpublishedinscholarlyjournals,such
astheAmericanEconomicReview,JournalofPolitical
Economy,andQuarterlyJournalofEconomics,andin
morepopularforums,suchasTheNewYorkTimes
andTheWallStreetJournal.Heisalsoauthorof
thebest-sellingintermediate-leveltextbookMacroeconomics(WorthPublishers).
Inadditiontohisteaching,research,andwriting,ProfessorMankiwhasbeena
researchassociateoftheNationalBureauofEconomicResearch,anadvisertothe
CongressionalBudgetOfficeandtheFederalReserveBanksofBostonandNew
York,andamemberoftheETStestdevelopmentcommitteefortheAdvanced
Placementexamineconomics.From2003to2005,heservedaschairmanofthe
President’sCouncilofEconomicAdvisers.
ProfessorMankiwlivesinWellesley,Massachusetts,withhiswife,Deborah,
threechildren,Catherine,Nicholas,andPeter,andtheirborderterrier,Tobin.
v
tothestudentpreface
Economicsisastudyofmankindintheordinarybusinessoflife.”So
wroteAlfredMarshall,thegreat19th-centuryeconomist,inhistextbook,
PrinciplesofEconomics.Althoughwehavelearnedmuchabouttheeconomy
sinceMarshall’stime,thisdefinitionofeconomicsisastruetodayasit
wasin1890,whenthefirsteditionofhistextwaspublished.
Whyshouldyou,asastudentatthebeginningofthe21stcentury,embarkon
thestudyofeconomics?Therearethreereasons.
Thefirstreasontostudyeconomicsisthatitwillhelpyouunderstandthe
worldinwhichyoulive.Therearemanyquestionsabouttheeconomythatmight
sparkyourcuriosity.WhyareapartmentssohardtofindinNewYorkCity?Why
doairlineschargelessforaround-tripticketifthetravelerstaysoveraSaturday
night?WhyisJohnnyDepppaidsomuchtostarinmovies?Whyarelivingstandards
someagerinmanyAfricancountries?Whydosomecountrieshavehigh
ratesofinflationwhileothershavestableprices?Whyarejobseasytofindin
someyearsandhardtofindinothers?Thesearejustafewofthequestionsthata
courseineconomicswillhelpyouanswer.
Thesecondreasontostudyeconomicsisthatitwillmakeyouamoreastute
participantintheeconomy.Asyougoaboutyourlife,youmakemanyeconomic
decisions.Whileyouareastudent,youdecidehowmanyyearstostayinschool.
Onceyoutakeajob,youdecidehowmuchofyourincometospend,howmuch
tosave,andhowtoinvestyoursavings.Somedayyoumayfindyourselfrunning
asmallbusinessoralargecorporation,andyouwilldecidewhatpricestocharge
foryourproducts.Theinsightsdevelopedinthecomingchapterswillgiveyou
anewperspectiveonhowbesttomakethesedecisions.Studyingeconomicswill
notbyitselfmakeyourich,butitwillgiveyousometoolsthatmayhelpinthat
endeavor.
Thethirdreasontostudyeconomicsisthatitwillgiveyouabetterunderstanding
ofboththepotentialandthelimitsofeconomicpolicy.Economicquestions
arealwaysonthemindsofpolicymakersinmayors’offices,governors’mansions,
andtheWhiteHouse.Whataretheburdensassociatedwithalternativeformsof
taxation?Whataretheeffectsoffreetradewithothercountries?Whatisthebest
waytoprotecttheenvironment?Howdoesagovernmentbudgetdeficitaffect
theeconomy?Asavoter,youhelpchoosethepoliciesthatguidetheallocationof
society’sresources.Anunderstandingofeconomicswillhelpyoucarryoutthat
responsibility.Andwhoknows:Perhapssomedayyouwillendupasoneofthose
policymakersyourself.
Thus,theprinciplesofeconomicscanbeappliedinmanyoflife’ssituations.
Whetherthefuturefindsyoureadingthenewspaper,runningabusiness,orsitting
intheOvalOffice,youwillbegladthatyoustudiedeconomics.
N.GregoryMankiw