Introduction to Economics

Recommended Prerequisites

NA

Teaching Methods

Lectures on the different contents of the course and tutorials based on joint analysis of contemporary issues.

Assessment: general regime (final exam: 100%) or continuous assessment (written test:

50%; analysis of a case study involving oral presentation followed by discussion in the classroom: 40%; students’ participation in the classroom: 10%).

Learning Outcomes

The introductory course in Economics applies the principles of economic analysis to (1) provide students with a better understanding of fundamental economic problems. Students are expected to analyse and understand problems faced by individuals and societies (2), applying Economic concepts and reasoning to the analysis of current political-economic events. (3) At the end of the academic semestre students should possess a basic level of economic literacy that enables them to understand how the economy operates, (4) as well as how public policies affect the performance of the economy.

Work Placement(s)

No

Syllabus

1. Economics as a Social Science (problems, challenges, and opportunities)

2. Schools of economic thought

3. Basic microeconomics

            3.1. Theory of the firm

            3.2. Theory of consumer behaviour

            3.3. Supply and demand

            3.4. Price determination

            3.5. Markets and market structure

4. Basic macroeconomics

            4.1. Inflation

            4.2. Unemployment

            4.3. Economic growth

            4.4. National income accounting

            4.5. Economic policy.

Head Lecturer(s)

Albertino Paulo Vila Maior Guimarães Monteiro

Assessment Methods

Assessment
Participation in the classroom: 10.0%
Research work: 40.0%
Frequency: 50.0%

Bibliography

Burda, M. & Wyplosz, C. (2022). Macroeconomics. 8ed. Oxford University Press.

De Grauwe, P. (2017). TheLimits of the Market: The Pendulum Between Government and Market. Oxford University Press.

Morson, G. S. & Schapiro, M. (2017). Cents and Sensibility. Princeton.

Porto, M. (2023). Economia: Um Texto Introdutório. 5ed. Almedina.

Pereira, P. T., Cabral, R., Santos, J. C. G., Afonso, A. & Arcanjo, M. (2022). Economia e Finanças Públicas. 6ed. Escolar Editora.

Raworth, K. (2017). Doughnut Economics: Seven Ways to Think Like a 21st-Century Economist. Penguin.

Samuelson, P. & Nordhaus, W. (2012). Economia. 19ed. McGraw-Hill.

Skidelsky, R. (2020). What's Wrong With Economics? A Premer for the Perplexed. Yale University Press.

Tirole, J. (2019). Economics for the Common Good. Princeton University Press.