Principles of Microeconomics (Paperback)

by N. Gregory Mankiw (Author)
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Editorial Reviews

Review
"The book’s strengths include its ability to explain in plain language the beauty of economic theory; the concise manner in which real world examples are integrated into the text; and, the online assistance that does an effective job in complementing the text."

"I think that the greatest strengths are that it is clear (written in a student-friendly language), relatively concise, and provides a good coverage of what I think students need to know about principles of economics. I think that the style of the text is personable and is easy for students to read without being condescending. In terms of the coverage, as I noted above, we cover the entire text in my one-semester class, and cover just about exactly the entire text – no more, and only a little (two chapters) less."

"I find navigation process very simple. I am very impressed with Meet your tutor – Master the Learning Objectives section (that is so well planned out and organized). If students are having problems with any of the material and they’re serious about being successful in this class, it is impossible for them not to understand the material after doing suggested activities in this section. "Ask the Author" video clips are interesting and clever. "Economic Applications" section also has good navigation system and can be useful for teachers and students both."

Product Description
Mankiw's Principles of Economics textbooks continue to be the most popular and widely used text in the economics classroom. PRINCIPLES OF MICROECONOMICS, 4th Edition features a strong revision of content in all 22 chapters while maintaining the clear and accessible writing style that is the hallmark of the highly respected author. The 4th edition also features an expanded instructor's resource package designed to assist instructors in course planning and classroom presentation and full integration of content with Aplia, the leading online Economics education program. In the 4th edition Greg Mankiw has created a full educational program for students and instructors -- Experience Mankiw 4th edition. "I have tried to put myself in the position of someone seeing economics for the first time. My goal is to emphasize the material that students should and do find interesting about the study of the economy." - N. Gregory Mankiw.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 533 pages
• Publisher: Thompson South-Western; 4th edition (January 27, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0324319169
• ISBN-13: 978-0324319163
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 8.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #4,770 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Easy to read. Easy to understand. Thorough., July 18, 2006

By	R. Woodbridge "digger" (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I would have given it 5 stars if the price was lower, but that's what you get for text books these days. It was still cheaper than buying it at Berkeley's bookstore.

I found this book to be very informative and well written whith good flow and easy to understand examples. The author brings current events into the world of Microeconomics, and allows the reader to understand the underlying mechanism that drives the decisions we make. When used in conjunction with a class, or by itself, this book provides the novice with a thorough understanding of the principles of Microeconomics.

25 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars extremely narrow, June 16, 2008

By	balyzu (Princeton, NJ) - See all my reviews

Joseph Schumpeter once encouraged his readers to make up their mind whether they wanted simple or useful answers, because both could not be had at the same time. Mankiw opts for the former option. A student who knows little about economics and who will be exposed to the discipline for the first time by using this textbook will get a very narrow view of economics. He or she will have no idea that there are strong disagreements about economic phenomena and even different schools of thought. This can be expected: Mankiw is a neoclassical economist, that school is dominant for one reason or another, so few would expect him to go out of his way to point out that there are different intellectual traditions in economics. However, Mankiw does not even bother much to point out disagreements within the mainstream either. For him, economics is a quasi-scientific discipline that clearly explains how things are; thus, economists disagree solely because of values.

That is a gross mischaracterization: neoclassical economists disagree a lot on theoretical issues, too. Mankiw's own colleague at Harvard - Dani Rodrik - described these disagreements mainly springing from the division between "first-best economists" and "second-best economists". The former group (Becker, Cowen, Mankiw) almost always finds a solution in the supply-demand framework and competitive markets. The latter group (Stiglitz, Rodrik, Akerlof) search for more nuanced and contextual explanations. Mankiw's only reference to "second-best" issues like imperfect information and behavioral economics is relegated to a couple paltry pages in the end of the book where it can be safely forgotten. The minimum wage is a case in point: Mankiw uses the simple supply-demand framework to "prove" that minimum wage causes unemployment. In fact, this view has lost popularity even among neoclassical economists. Recently over 600 American economists (including several Nobel laureates such as one of the fathers of modern neoclassical economics Kenneth Arrow!) signed the petition to increase the minimum wage in the US. Some of the most important research disproving Mankiw's claim has been done by people as mainstream as David Card (Berkeley) and Alan Krueger (Princeton).

Trade is another example. When arguing for "free" trade, Mankiw goes through possible counterarguments. The "infant industry" argument (supported by the "father" of economics Adam Smith himself) is dismissed after one paragraph. If these infant industries are of any promise, Mankiw proclaims, the private sector will take them up. Never mind uncertainty (not risk, but uncertainty). Never mind the fact that the US used protective barriers designed by Hamilton to allow its industries mature, never mind the fact that Japan and Korea developed using the same method. Never mind the fact that a very recent Commission on Growth and Development (which includes someone as mainstream as the Nobel laureate Bob Solow) concluded that "Government intervention in the economy, and a degree of protectionism, will be needed in the early stages of development".

My final example is the agency assumption. To act with a degree of self-interest is one thing, but to be a selfish and calculating sociopath is another. The mainstream is more and more open to alternative ideas about agency. Kenneth Arrow himself once said that if human beings were to act as utility-maximizers all the time, society and all of its social ties would be pretty much destroyed. The mainstream borrows more and more from behavioral economics, behavioral game theory, etc. Samuel Bowles, for one, does a good job of effectively combing the ideas of the mainstream with alternative ideas about agency. Of course, Mankiw does not care. I could go on, but I think this is enough.

Adbusters Magazine called "one of the most effective and talented propagandists of our times". That might be an exaggeration, but beware and hope that your instructor will add at least some nuance to Mankiw's exposition of economics. I was quite fortunate since my instructor, while thoroughly neoclassical, at least made sure to spell out the assumptions and point out which ones were more arbitrary than others (e.g. constant marginal utility of money in welfare economics) and when exactly economists are being sneaky (e.g. gains from free trade, even if all assumptions hold, are only a potential Pareto improvement). Some others may not be so lucky.

5.0 out of 5 stars Best introductory book to microeconomics, June 10, 2009

By	mnteo (Europe) - See all my reviews

I am a graduate student of one of the top 5 business schools in the world. I think this is the best introductory book to microeconomics.

I would recommend it to anyone interested in the principles of microeconomics, who has not had any previous exposure to this topic. Please note, this is an introductory book.