Basic methods for studying economic processes. Methods for studying economic processes

The concept of method comes from Greek word methodos, which means the path to something, the path of knowledge or research. As a method of science, it means a set or system of techniques and operations that are used by economists to collect, systematize and analyze economic facts, phenomena and processes. First, an economist studies and collects facts and phenomena that relate to the consideration of an economic problem. Next, he systematizes the collected facts and phenomena, discovers logical economic connections between them, makes generalizations, and studies their interaction.

In economic research, methods of induction and deduction are used. By induction we mean the derivation of principles, laws and analysis of facts. The method of induction means the progression of thoughts from the analysis of facts to theory, from the particular to the general. The reverse process, that is, when economists study certain problems, going from theory to individual facts and testing or rejecting theoretical positions, is called deduction. Induction and deduction are not opposite, but complementary methods of research.

When studying economic phenomena and processes, the method of abstraction is widely used, which means purifying our ideas from the random, isolated and isolating from them the stable, typical. So, abstraction is generalization. In economics it has practical significance. A correct theory is based on an analysis of facts and is realistic. Theories that do not agree with facts are anti-scientific; application often leads to distortions in economic policy.

An important means of understanding economic processes and phenomena is the use of methods of analysis and synthesis. Analysis involves dividing an object (phenomenon or process) into its component parts, identifying individual aspects and features. Synthesis, on the contrary, means the combination of previously separate parts and sides into integrity. Analysis helps to reveal what is essential in a phenomenon, and synthesis completes the disclosure of the essence, makes it possible to show in what forms this phenomenon is inherent in economic reality, and leads to generalization.

The scientific study of economic phenomena also involves a combination of logical and historical approaches to the study of economic processes and phenomena. This means that it is necessary to consider the conditions in which the phenomenon began to develop, how it changed under the influence of changing historical conditions. Changes that do not contradict logical principles are logical, and if they contradict, then you need to look for the reasons for this.

The final link in the knowledge of economic processes and phenomena, the criterion of truth, is social practice.

The use of graphs and tables when studying economic phenomena and processes deserves special attention. Graphs and tables are tools from which certain conclusions are drawn and certain trends are identified. Based on the tables, certain generalizations are made. Graphs are a tool with which economists express their theories and models. They show the relationship between two groups of economic facts. Therefore, such simple two-dimensional graphs are a convenient means of demonstrating the relationships between economic phenomena, for example, between income and consumption, prices and demand, prices and supply of goods, and others.

Economics is divided into macroeconomics and microeconomics. This division is due to the fact that economic phenomena and processes can be studied at the macro and micro levels. Microeconomics studies the activities of individual economic units in connection with various economic entities. She examines the structure of their costs and income, indicators economic activity, problems of organizing production, sales, management, use of income and other problems of enterprise development. Microeconomics also examines the activities of households as providers of resources, recipients of income, and consumers of goods and services.

Macroeconomics studies economic activity on the scale of the national economy, its regions, national economic complexes, spheres and industries, and the world economy. Based on the study of macroeconomic processes, government forecasting and programming is developed, social insurance, pricing and tax policies, lending, customs policies, etc. are implemented. The division of economic science into micro- and macroeconomics is conditional. Microeconomic processes are closely intertwined with macroeconomic ones; it is almost impossible to clearly distinguish between them.

All economic sciences are divided into two types: theoretical and practical. Theoretical are sciences that study laws and significant economic relationships in real activities at the macro level. These include political economy, macro- and microeconomics. Applied - sciences that study how economic laws and interdependencies manifest themselves in specific industries and areas of economic activity. These include, for example, the economics of industry, transport, Agriculture, trade.

INTRODUCTION 3

1. SUBJECT OF ECONOMIC SCIENCE. 4

2. ECONOMIC RESEARCH METHODS 7

PROCESSES.

3. INEQUALITY IN INCOME DISTRIBUTION 11

IN A MARKET ECONOMY. LORENZ CURVE.

GINI COEFFICIENT.

4. ROLE OF THE STATE IN REDISTRIBUTION 15

INCOME

CONCLUSION. 20

LIST OF REFERENCES USED 21

INTRODUCTION

In the conditions of the formation and development of market relations in the world and the Russian Federation in particular, for the scientific substantiation of radical economic reforms, ensuring the viability of markets, the feasibility of using methods for regulating economic activity - great importance economic science is acquired - a field of scientific knowledge that studies the patterns governing consumption and production.

Economics is the study of how people exist, develop, and what they think about in their lives. Everyday life.

The first reason to study economics is that this science deals with problems that concern us all without exception: what types of work need to be done? How are they paid? How many goods can you buy with a ruble of wages now and during a period of galloping inflation? What is the probability of a time coming when a person will not be able to find a suitable job within an acceptable period?

The relevance of economic science lies in the fact that with its help we can identify not only the main trends in the economic development of society throughout history, but also, based on the knowledge and methods of economic science, we can create a model of the state of the economy. Based on these studies, we can also calculate the future state of affairs in a particular sector of the economy, predict possible risks, investments and profits.

Economic science allows us to assess the impact of the crisis on the activities of research subjects and the economic situation as a whole. Assess the effectiveness of government measures aimed at overcoming crisis phenomena.

1. SUBJECT OF ECONOMIC SCIENCE

The task of any science is to analyze real processes, facts, identify internal relationships, determine patterns and trends in changes in phenomena. Economics is no exception to this. The entire history of economic science shows that it was a constant search for a holistic systemic analysis of the economic life of society, the desire to describe, explain and anticipate development trends, clarify the laws of economic life, and justify the methods of the most rational economic decisions.

Economics, like other social sciences, has a number of features compared to the natural sciences. Firstly, economics deals with the activities of people and, because of this, is a public, social science, in contrast to the natural sciences, which study phenomena and processes not mediated by the will and consciousness of people. Second, economic action and therefore economic science are directly related to economic interests and ideology. This poses the challenge for economic science to constantly turn to others social sciences and disciplines: sociology, political science, history, etc. Thirdly, due to the direct connection of economic science with the economic interests of people, economic science is interested not just in rational economic decisions, but in the need to implement these decisions while taking into account the socially fair distribution of products and benefits, recognized by society.

The subject of economic theory is economic relations in society.

Since economic relations represent an integral system in society, the subject of economic science has another definition.

Economics is the science of systems of economic relations in society.

Economic science, analyzing economic relations, must answer a number of fundamental questions:

1. What is the economic system, how is it structured, what are its main structural elements, goals and forms of movement?

2. How does the economic system function, how is the interrelation of its elements in the process of functioning, and what impact does economic decision-making have?

3. How does the system of economic relations interact with other spheres of society and, above all, with the social sphere and politics?
Economic science, based on the study of real economic processes, develops a basis for making effective decisions in relation to both the entire economy and when solving specific problems. Since making these decisions involves, first of all, a comprehensive study of the object, i.e. What it represents, the initial task of economic science is to determine the content and structure of the economic system. Only by understanding the system and its features can one make rational economic decisions and make the right economic choice.

Due to the complexity of economic systems, economic science in modern conditions is represented by a set of directions and schools. However, despite the various methodological approaches to economic analysis available, in modern conditions a fairly harmonious structure of modern economic science has formed.

The constituent parts of modern economic science and the immediate subject of its individual parts can be correctly defined in the context of two fundamental features.

1. Economics develops along with society - economics and theoretical views on economics evolve along with the development of real economic relations.

2. The increasing complexity of economic relations and the emergence of new models of economic systems inevitably give rise to the differentiation of economic science and the emergence of new directions and schools.

According to the scale of the field of study, economic science is divided into microeconomics, which studies the activities of firms, households, individual industries and states, and macroeconomics, which studies the national economy as a whole. IN last years The scientific literature also uses the concepts of “nanoeconomics” (studies the activities of individual economic entities), mesoeconomics (industries, regions), intereconomics ( world economy) and mega-economy (world economy).

2. METHODS OF RESEARCH OF ECONOMIC PROCESSES.

The method of any science is those tools and techniques with the help of which the subject of this science is studied.

Economic science studies the general patterns of behavior of people and the economic system as a whole in the process of production, exchange, distribution and consumption of goods in conditions of limited resources. Wherein main problem is the efficient distribution and use of limited resources in order to maximize the satisfaction of human needs.

The research method depends on the subject of science. It is clear that, unlike astronomy, economics cannot use a telescope or spectral research methods. Furthermore, economics is not a science where laboratory experiments can be carried out in order to find the truth. What method is used in economic theory? What tools can be used, for example, to determine the principles of functioning of a market economy?

In economic theory, two groups of methods can be distinguished: general and specific. General methods are general philosophical principles and approaches that can be applied in economic analysis. Such general approaches are formed within the framework of the dialectical method. In principle, dialectics is the doctrine of the most general laws of development of nature and society.

When studying economics and using the dialectical method, economists rely on the following dialectical principles:

Everything develops, so every economic phenomenon is considered in development, in constant movement.

The internal impulses of economic development are contradictions of different levels within the economic system.

The development of economic phenomena and processes occurs according to the laws of dialectics. This is the law of the transition of quantity into quality, the law of unity and struggle of opposites, the law of the negation of negation. When studying economic phenomena and processes, it is necessary to understand their causes, essence, and internal connections between them.

Particular methods of studying economics include analysis and synthesis, abstraction, the “other things being equal” assumption, induction and deduction, the unity of logical and historical, mathematical and statistical methods.

Analysis involves dividing the object of study into individual elements, into simpler economic phenomena and processes, and identifying the essential aspects of phenomena and processes. The selected elements are examined from different angles, the main and essential things are highlighted in them.

Synthesis means combining the studied elements and aspects of an object into a single whole (system). Synthesis is the opposite of analysis, with which it is inextricably linked. In the course of analysis and synthesis, dependencies between economic processes and phenomena, cause-and-effect relationships are established, and patterns are identified.

Abstraction is a distraction from the unimportant, highlighting the most important facts and relationships in the economy. Abstraction also occurs in the process of analysis.

The "all other things being equal" (ceteris paribus) assumption is used in the analysis and synthesis process. It means that only the phenomena and relationships under study change, and all other phenomena and relationships are assumed unchanged.

Induction is the derivation of the general from particular facts, the movement from facts to theory, from the particular to the general, as philosophers say. Research begins with observation of economic processes, with the accumulation of facts. Induction allows you to make generalizations based on facts.

Deduction means the preliminary formulation of a theory before it is confirmed or rejected on the basis of factual testing, and the application of the formulated provisions to observable facts and economic processes. A formulated scientific assumption or assumption is a hypothesis. In this case, the research goes from theory to facts, from the general to the specific.

Unity of the logical and historical. (In this case, the logical is synonymous with the theoretical, the historical is synonymous with practice.) The principle of the unity of the logical and historical is that the theoretical analysis of economic phenomena must reflect the real historical process of the emergence and development of these phenomena. The theory must correspond to history and practice, but not copy them, but reproduce them essentially and without random phenomena and facts.

Mathematical and statistical methods. With the development of mathematics and computer science, it became possible to represent many economic dependencies in the form of mathematical formulas and models. Statistical methods make it possible to use accumulated arrays of economic data to analyze and identify trends and patterns of economic development and for economic forecasting.

Mathematics, computer science and statistics make it possible to build economic models with a sufficient degree of accuracy. The model in a simplified abstract form represents the most important features of the individual economic processes being studied or the economy as a whole. The model reflects the most essential features of economic processes. It should be noted that the model can be presented not only in mathematical form. Models are formulated in different ways: mathematical description using equations, inequalities, etc., graphical representation, description using a table, verbal formulation. In the future, we will have the opportunity to demonstrate this when analyzing the patterns of development of a market economy, in particular, the law of demand and the law of supply.

As a result of studying economics with the help various methods economic laws are revealed.

Economic law is a stable, repeating, objective, cause-and-effect relationship and interdependence of economic phenomena and processes.

It should be noted that economic patterns are studied and formulated at different levels of economic analysis, at the microeconomic level, macroeconomic level, and at the level of the world economy.

Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation

FEDERAL AGENCY FOR EDUCATION

State educational institution higher professional education

RUSSIAN STATE TRADE AND ECONOMICS UNIVERSITY

Novosibirsk branch

Faculty of Trade and Economics

COURSE WORK

by discipline " Economic theory»

on the topic “Methodology for studying economic processes and phenomena”

Novosibirsk 2010

Introduction

1.1 Basic concepts

1. Methodology analysis

2.1 Concept and types

3. Ways to improve

Conclusion

Bibliography

Introduction

To properly understand the course “Economic Theory” it is necessary to define the methods of economic theory. For three centuries now, economic theorists of various directions and schools have expressed contradictory views. During this time, ideas about the sources of society's wealth, the role of the state in economic activity changed several times, and even the name of science itself was updated.

The first reason to study economic theory is that this theory deals with problems that concern us all without exception: what types of jobs need to be done? How are they paid? How many goods can you buy for a conventional unit of wages now and during a period of galloping inflation? What is the probability of a time coming when a person will not be able to find a suitable job within an acceptable period?

Economic theory is designed to study and explain the processes and phenomena of economic life, and for this, economic theory must penetrate into the essence of deep processes, reveal laws and predict ways of their use.

In economic processes, one can detect two unique layers of relations between people: the first of them is superficial, externally visible, the second is internal, hidden from external observation.

The study of externally visible economic relations is naturally available to every person. Therefore, already from childhood, people develop ordinary economic thinking, which is based on direct knowledge of economic life. Such thinking, as a rule, is distinguished by its subjective nature, in which the individual psychology of a person is manifested. It is limited by a person’s personal horizons and is often based on fragmentary and one-sided information;

Economic theory strives to discover behind the external appearance of economic phenomena the essence - their internal content, as well as the cause-and-effect dependencies of some phenomena on others. Professor Paul Heine (USA) made an interesting comparison: “An economist knows the real world no better, and in most cases worse than managers, engineers, mechanics, in a word, business people. But economists know how different things are connected. Economics allows us to better understand what we see and to think more consistently and logically about a wide range of complex social relations.

The relevance of the topic lies in the fact that, without knowing the methods for studying economic phenomena, it is impossible to correctly assess a particular economic event, to calculate whether the enterprise will make a profit, or vice versa.

The purpose of the coursework is to consider methods for studying economic processes and phenomena.

Objectives of the course work: we will consider the methodology in theory, conduct an analysis, and also consider ways to improve this topic.

1. Theory of studying methods of economic processes and phenomena

1.1 Basic concepts

First, let’s look at the very concept of methodology and what it includes.

The methodology of science, as is known, is the study of the principles of construction, forms and methods scientific knowledge. Therefore, the methodology of economic theory is the science of the principles of constructing an economic system, of methods for studying economic activity.

The methodology of economic theory is the science of methods for studying economic life and economic phenomena. It assumes the presence common approach to the study of economic phenomena, a unified understanding of reality, a unified philosophical basis. The methodology is designed to help solve main question: with the help of what scientific methods, methods of understanding reality, economic theory achieves true illumination of the functioning and further development of a particular economic system. In the methodology of economic theory, four main approaches can be distinguished:

1) subjectivist (from the standpoint of subjective idealism);

2) neopositivist-empirical (from the standpoint of neopositivist empiricism and skepticism);

3) rationalistic;

4) dialectical-materialistic.

With a subjectivist approach, the starting point for the analysis of economic phenomena is taken as an economic entity influencing the world, and the sovereign “I” is relatively independent, hence everyone is equal. The object of economic analysis is the behavior of the subject of the economy (“homoeconomics”), and therefore economic theory is considered as the science of human activity, determined by the boundaries of needs. The main category in this approach is need, usefulness. Economics becomes the theory of choice made by an economic entity from various options.

The neopositivist-empirical approach is based on a more thorough study of phenomena and their evaluation. It is put at the forefront technical apparatus research, which turns from a tool into an object of knowledge (mathematical apparatus, econometrics, cybernetics, etc.), and the result of the research is various kinds of empirical models, which are the main categories here. This approach involves dividing into microeconomics - economic problems at the firm and industry level, and macroeconomics - economic problems on a societal scale.

The rationalistic approach aims to discover "natural" or rational laws civilization. This requires a study of the economic system as a whole, economic laws governing this system, studying the economic "anatomy" of society. The economic tables of F. Quesnay are the pinnacle of this approach. Purpose economic activity human being is the desire to obtain benefit, and the goal of economic theory is not the study human behavior, but the study of laws governing the production and distribution of the social product (D. Ricardo). This approach recognizes the division of society into classes, in contrast to the subjectivist approach, which represents society as a set of equal subjects. The main attention in this approach is paid to cost, price, and economic laws.

The dialectical-materialist approach is considered the only correct one in solving scientific problems on the basis not of empirical positivism (experience), but of objective analysis characterizing the internal connections of phenomena that exist in reality. Economic processes and phenomena constantly arise, develop and are destroyed, i.e. are in constant motion, and this is their dialectic. Methodology must not be mixed with methods - tools, a set of research techniques in science and their reproduction in the system economic categories and laws.

The characteristic features of the method of economic analysis are: a) determination of a system of indicators that comprehensively characterize the economic activities of organizations;

b) establishing the subordination of indicators, highlighting the total effective factors and factors (major and secondary) influencing them;

c) identifying the form of relationship between factors;

d) selection of techniques and methods for studying the relationship;

e) quantitative measurement of the influence of factors on the aggregate indicator.

The set of techniques and methods that are used in the study of economic processes constitutes the methodology of economic analysis. The methodology of economic analysis is based on the intersection of three areas of knowledge: economics, statistics and mathematics. TO economic methods analysis includes comparison, grouping, balance sheet and graphical methods. Statistical methods include the use of averages and relative values, index method, correlation and regression analysis, etc. Mathematical methods can be divided into three groups: economic ( matrix methods, theory of production functions, theory of inter-industry balance); methods of economic cybernetics and optimal programming (linear, nonlinear, dynamic programming); methods of operations research and decision making (graph theory, game theory, queuing theory).

1.2 Characteristics of the main techniques and methods of economic analysis

Comparison is a comparison of the data being studied and the facts of economic life. A distinction is made between horizontal comparative analysis, which is used to determine absolute and relative deviations of the actual level of the indicators under study from the base level. Vertical comparative analysis used to study the structure of economic phenomena; trend analysis used in studying the relative rates of growth and increase in indicators over a number of years to the level of the base year, i.e. when studying time series.

Required condition comparative analysis is the comparability of the compared indicators, suggesting:

· unity of volume, cost, quality, structural indicators; · unity of time periods for which comparison is made; · comparability of production conditions and comparability of the methodology for calculating indicators.

Average values are calculated on the basis of mass data on qualitatively homogeneous phenomena. They help determine general patterns and trends in the development of economic processes.

Groupings – used to study dependencies in complex phenomena, the characteristics of which are reflected by homogeneous indicators and different values (characteristics of the equipment fleet by commissioning time, by place of operation, by shift ratio, etc.)

The balance method consists of comparing and measuring two sets of indicators tending to a certain balance. It allows us to identify a new analytical (balancing) indicator as a result. For example, when analyzing an enterprise's supply of raw materials, the need for raw materials, sources of covering the need are compared and a balancing indicator is determined - a shortage or excess of raw materials.

As an auxiliary, the balance sheet method is used to check the results of calculations of the influence of factors on the resulting aggregate indicator. If the sum of the influence of factors on the performance indicator is equal to its deviation from the base value, then, therefore, the calculations were carried out correctly. Lack of equality indicates incomplete consideration of factors or mistakes made:

where y is the effective indicator; x – factors; – deviation of the effective indicator due to factor x i.

The balance method is also used to determine the size of the influence of individual factors on the change in the performance indicator, if the influence of other factors is known:

Graphic method. Graphs are a large-scale representation of indicators and their relationships using geometric shapes.

The graphical method has no independent significance in the analysis, but is used to illustrate measurements.

The index method is based on relative indicators that express the ratio of the level of a given phenomenon to its level taken as a basis for comparison. Statistics names several types of indices that are used in analysis: aggregate, arithmetic, harmonic, etc.

By using index recalculations and constructing a time series characterizing, for example, the output of industrial products in value terms, it is possible to skillfully analyze dynamic phenomena.

The method of correlation and regression (stochastic) analysis is widely used to determine the closeness of the relationship between indicators that are not functionally dependent, i.e. the connection is not manifested in each individual case, but in a certain dependence.

With the help of correlation, two main problems are solved:

· a model of operating factors is compiled (regression equation);

· a quantitative assessment of the closeness of connections is given (correlation coefficient).

Matrix models are a schematic representation of an economic phenomenon or process using scientific abstraction. The most widely used method here is the “input-output” analysis, which is built according to a checkerboard pattern and makes it possible to present the relationship between costs and production results in the most compact form.

Mathematical programming is the main means of solving problems to optimize production and economic activities.

The operations research method is aimed at studying economic systems, including the production and economic activities of enterprises, in order to determine such a combination of structural interconnected elements of systems that will best determine the best economic indicator from a number of possible ones.

Game theory as a branch of operations research is a theory mathematical models making optimal decisions in conditions of uncertainty or conflict of several parties with different interests.

2. Methodology analysis

2.1 Concept and types

Analysis is the mental division of the phenomenon being studied into its component parts and the study of each of these parts separately. Through synthesis, economic theory recreates a single holistic picture.

Widespread: induction and deduction. Through induction (guidance), a transition is ensured from the study of individual facts to general provisions and conclusions. Deduction (inference) makes it possible to move from general conclusions to relatively specific ones. Analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction are applied in unity by economic theory. Their combination provides a systematic (integrated) approach to complex (multi-element) phenomena of economic life.

An important place in the study of economic phenomena and processes is occupied by historical and logical methods. They do not oppose each other, but are applied in unity, since the starting point of historical research coincides, in general, with the starting point of logical research. However, the logical (theoretical) study of economic phenomena and processes is not a mirror reflection of the historical process. In the specific conditions of a particular country, economic phenomena may arise that are not obligatory for the prevailing economic system. If they actually (historically) take place, then they can be ignored in theoretical analysis. We can take our minds off them. A historian cannot ignore this kind of phenomenon. He must describe them.

Using the historical method, economics studies economic processes and phenomena in the sequence in which they arose, developed, and were replaced by one another in life itself. This approach allows us to concretely and clearly present the features of various economic systems.

The historical method shows that in nature and society development proceeds from simple to complex. In relation to the subject of economics, this means that in the entire set of economic phenomena and processes it is necessary to highlight first of all the simplest ones, those that arise earlier than others and form the basis for the emergence of more complex ones. For example, in market analysis, such an economic phenomenon is the exchange of goods.

Economic processes and phenomena are characterized by qualitative and quantitative certainty. Therefore, economic theory ( political Economy) widely uses mathematical and statistical techniques and research tools that make it possible to identify the quantitative side of processes and phenomena of economic life, their transition to a new quality. At the same time, it is widely used Computer Engineering. The method of economic and mathematical modeling plays a special role here. This method, being one of the systematic research methods, makes it possible to determine in a formalized form the causes of changes in economic phenomena, the patterns of these changes, their consequences, opportunities and costs of influence, and also makes forecasting economic processes realistic. Using this method, economic models are created.

An economic model is a formalized description of an economic process or phenomenon, the structure of which is determined by its objective properties and the subjective target nature of the study.

In connection with the construction of models, it is important to note the role of functional analysis in economic theory.

Functions are variables that depend on other variables.

Functions occur in our daily lives and we most often do not realize it. They take place in technology, physics, geometry, chemistry, economics, etc. In relation to economics, for example, we can note the functional relationship between price and demand. Demand depends on price. If the price of a product increases, the quantity demanded for it, other things being equal, decreases. In this case, price is an independent variable, or argument, and demand is a dependent variable, or function. Thus, we can briefly say that demand is a function of price. But demand and price can change places. The higher the demand, the higher the price, other things being equal. Therefore, price can be a function of demand.

Economic-mathematical modeling as a method of economic theory became widespread in the 20th century. However, the element of subjectivity in constructing economic models sometimes leads to errors. Nobel Prize laureate French economist Maurice Allais wrote in 1989 that for 40 years economic science has been developing in the wrong direction: towards completely artificial and divorced from life mathematical models with a predominance of mathematical formalism, which, in fact, represents a big step back .

Most models and principles of economic theory can be expressed graphically, in the form of mathematical equations, so when studying economic theory it is important to know mathematics and be able to draw up and read graphs.

Graphs are depictions of the relationship between two or more variables.

The dependence can be linear (i.e. constant), then the graph is a straight line located at an angle between two axes - vertical (usually denoted by the letter Y) and horizontal (X).

If the graph line goes from left to right in a descending direction, then there is a Feedback(so, as the price of a product decreases, the volume of its sales usually increases). If the graph line is ascending, then the connection is direct (so, as the production costs of a product increase, prices for it usually increase -). The dependence may be nonlinear (i.e., changing), then the graph takes the form of a curved line (for example, as inflation decreases, unemployment tends to increase - the Phillips curve).

Within the framework of the graphical approach, diagrams are widely used - drawings showing the relationship between indicators. They can be circular, columnar, etc.

The diagrams clearly demonstrate the indicators of the models and their relationships. When analyzing economic problems, positive and normative analysis are often used. Positive analysis gives us the opportunity to see economic phenomena and processes as they really are: what was or what could be. Positive statements do not have to be true, but any dispute regarding a positive statement can be resolved by checking the facts. Normative analysis is based on the study of what should be and how it should be. A normative statement is most often derived from a positive one, but objective facts cannot prove its truth or falsity. In normative analysis, assessments are made - fair or unfair, bad or good, acceptable or unacceptable.

2.2 Methodology factor analysis

All phenomena and processes of economic activity of enterprises are interconnected and interdependent. Some of them are directly related to each other, others indirectly. Hence, an important methodological issue in economic analysis is the study and measurement of the influence of factors on the value of the economic indicators under study.

Economic factor analysis is understood as a gradual transition from the initial factor system to the final factor system, the disclosure of a complete set of direct, quantitatively measurable factors that influence the change in the performance indicator. Based on the nature of the relationship between indicators, methods of deterministic and stochastic factor analysis are distinguished.

Deterministic factor analysis is a technique for studying the influence of factors whose connection with the performance indicator is functional in nature.

The main properties of the deterministic approach to analysis: construction of a deterministic model through logical analysis; the presence of a complete (hard) connection between indicators; the impossibility of separating the results of the influence of simultaneously acting factors that cannot be combined in one model; study of relationships in short term. There are four types of deterministic models:

Additive models represent an algebraic sum of indicators and have the form

Such models, for example, include cost indicators in relation to elements of production costs and cost items; an indicator of the volume of production in its relationship with the volume of output of individual products or the volume of output in individual departments.

Multiplicative models in a generalized form can be represented by the formula

An example of a multiplicative model is a two-factor model of sales volume

where H is the average number of employees;

CB - average output per employee.

Multiple models:

An example of a multiple model is the indicator of the turnover period of goods (in days). T O.T:

where Z T is the average stock of goods; О Р - one-day sales volume.

Mixed models are a combination of the above models and can be described using special expressions:

Examples of such models are cost indicators per 1 ruble. commercial products, profitability indicators, etc.

To study the relationship between indicators and quantitatively measure the many factors that influenced the effective indicator, we present general rules transforming models to include new factor indicators.

To detail the generalizing factor indicator into its components, which are of interest for analytical calculations, the technique of lengthening the factor system is used.

If the original factor model

then the model will take the form

To identify a certain number of new factors and construct the factor indicators necessary for calculations, the technique of expanding factor models is used. In this case, the numerator and denominator are multiplied by the same number:

To construct new factor indicators, the technique of reducing factor models is used. When using this technique, the numerator and denominator are divided by the same number.

The detail of factor analysis is largely determined by the number of factors whose influence can be quantitatively assessed, therefore multifactorial multiplicative models are of great importance in the analysis. Their construction is based on the following principles: the place of each factor in the model must correspond to its role in the formation of the effective indicator; the model should be built from a two-factor full model by sequentially dividing factors, usually qualitative, into components; When writing a formula for a multifactor model, factors should be arranged from left to right in the order in which they are replaced.

Building a factor model is the first stage of deterministic analysis. Next, determine the method for assessing the influence of factors.

The method of chain substitutions consists in determining a number of intermediate values of the generalizing indicator by sequentially replacing the basic values of the factors with the reporting ones. This method is based on elimination. Eliminate means to eliminate, exclude the influence of all factors on the value of the effective indicator, except one. Moreover, based on the fact that all factors change independently of each other, i.e. First, one factor changes, and all the others remain unchanged. then two change while the others remain unchanged, etc.

IN general view The application of the chain production method can be described as follows:

where a 0, b 0, c 0 are the basic values of factors influencing the general indicator y;

a 1 , b 1 , c 1 - actual values of factors;

y a, y b, are intermediate changes in the resulting indicator associated with changes in factors a, b, respectively.

The total change Dу=у 1 –у 0 consists of the sum of changes in the resulting indicator due to changes in each factor with fixed values of the remaining factors:

Advantages this method: versatility of application, ease of calculations.

The disadvantage of the method is that, depending on the chosen order of factor replacement, the results of factor decomposition have different meanings. This is due to the fact that as a result of applying this method, a certain indecomposable residue is formed, which is added to the magnitude of the influence of the last factor. In practice, the accuracy of factor assessment is neglected, highlighting the relative importance of the influence of one or another factor. However, there are certain rules that determine the sequence of substitution: if there are quantitative and qualitative indicators in the factor model, the change in quantitative factors is considered first; if the model is represented by several quantitative and quality indicators, the substitution sequence is determined by logical analysis.

In analysis, quantitative factors are understood as those that express the quantitative certainty of phenomena and can be obtained by direct accounting (number of workers, machines, raw materials, etc.).

Qualitative factors determine the internal qualities, signs and characteristics of the phenomena being studied (labor productivity, product quality, average working hours, etc.).

The absolute difference method is a modification of the chain substitution method. The change in the effective indicator due to each factor using the method of differences is defined as the product of the deviation of the factor being studied by the basic or reporting value of another factor, depending on the selected substitution sequence:

The method of relative differences is used to measure the influence of factors on the growth of an effective indicator in multiplicative and mixed models of the form y = (a - b) . With. It is used in cases where the source data contains previously determined relative deviations of factor indicators in percentages.

For multiplicative models like y = a. V. The analysis technique is as follows: find relative deviation each factor indicator:

determine the deviation of the effective indicator y due to each factor

The integral method allows you to avoid the disadvantages inherent in the chain substitution method and does not require the use of techniques for distributing the indecomposable remainder among factors, because it has a logarithmic law of redistribution of factor loads. The integral method makes it possible to achieve a complete decomposition of the effective indicator into factors and is universal in nature, i.e. applicable to multiplicative, multiple and mixed models. The operation of calculating a definite integral is solved using a PC and is reduced to constructing integrand expressions that depend on the type of function or model of the factor system.

2. Ways to improve

Economic theory is the methodological foundation of a whole complex of sciences: sectoral (economics of trade, industry, transport, construction, etc.); functional (finance, credit, marketing, management, forecasting, etc.); intersectoral ( economical geography, demographics, statistics, etc.). Economic theory is one of the social sciences, along with history, philosophy, law, etc. It is designed to reveal one part of social phenomena in human life, the science of law - another, the science of morality - a third, etc., and only the totality of theoretical, social and historical sciences are able to explain the functioning of social life. Economic theory takes into account the knowledge inherent in specific economic sciences, as well as sociology, psychology, history, etc., without taking into account which its conclusions may turn out to be erroneous.

The connection between economic theory and other economic sciences in the most general form can be presented in the form of the following diagram (Scheme 1).

Scheme 1

Practical significance of economic theory ( famous formula O. Comte) is that knowledge leads to foresight, and foresight leads to action. Economic theory should underlie economic policy, and through it, permeate the area of economic practice. Action (practice) leads to knowledge, knowledge - to foresight, foresight - to right action. Economic theory is not a set of rules about how to become rich. She does not give ready answers to all questions. Theory is just a tool, a way of understanding economic reality. Mastery of this tool and knowledge of the basics of economic theory can help everyone do right choice in many life situations. Therefore, there is no need to stop at the knowledge achieved, but to constantly look for ways to improve this knowledge.

Conclusion

In this course work We examined the basic concepts of methodology and identified four main approaches to methodology in economic theory. They characterized the basic techniques and methods of economic analysis, examined the concept and methodology of factor analysis. We concluded that it is better to use research methods comprehensively in order to see the results more clearly.

Today a person cannot consider himself involved in education and culture if he has not studied and understood the laws social development, did not master the knowledge of economic theory. After all, economic theory is not a set of rules on how to become rich. She does not give ready answers to all questions. Theory is just a tool, a way of understanding economic reality. Mastery of this tool and knowledge of the basics of economic theory can help everyone make the right choice in many life situations. Therefore, there is no need to stop at the knowledge achieved, but to constantly look for ways to improve this knowledge.

In conclusion, I would like to quote the words of J. Keynes that “the ideas of economists and political thinkers, both when they are right and when they are wrong, have much greater significance than is commonly thought. In reality, only they rule the world.” It follows that the problems economic organization societies are serious matters that require study and should not be taken lightly.

Bibliography

1. Abryutina M.S. Economic analysis of trading activities. Tutorial. – M.: “Business and Service”, 2000.

2. Bakanov M.I. Sheremet A.D. Theory of economic analysis. - N.: Textbook Finance and Statistics, 1997.

3. Efimova O.V. The financial analysis. – M.: Publishing house “Accounting”, 1998.

4. Ripoll-Zaragosi F.B. Financial and management analysis. –M.: Prior Publishing House, 1999.

5. Richard Jacques. Audit and analysis of the economic activity of an enterprise. –M.: Audit. UNITY, 1997.

6. Savitskaya G.V. Analysis of the economic activities of an agro-industrial complex enterprise: Textbook. – Mn.: IP “Ecoperspective”, 1999.

7. Sheremet A.D. Complex economic analysis activities of the enterprise (methodology issues). – M.: Economics, 1974.

8. Sheremet A.D., Negashev E.V. Methodology financial analysis. – M.: Infra – M, 1999.

9. Economic and mathematical methods in the analysis of economic activities of enterprises and associations. – M.: Finance and Statistics, 1982

Goals of Economic Theory

Basic goals of economic theory:

meeting needs with limited resources;
find effective ways using resources to achieve certain goals;

Economy(economics) is a science that studies the choices made by individuals, firms, and the state, using limited resources to satisfy their goals. Currently, economics is an independent science that studies human solutions to the problem of rare resources.

Economic theory includes two sections: microeconomics and macroeconomics.

Microeconomics examines the behavior of individual households and firms; economic patterns of the formation of entrepreneurial capital and the competitive environment. The center of her analysis is the prices of individual goods, costs, the mechanism of functioning of the company, and labor motivation.
Main principle microeconomics: Adoption optimal solution carried out upon comparison marginal benefits And marginal cost.
Macroeconomics studies the functioning of the national economy on the basis of emerging microproportions. The objects of her research are national product and income, general level prices, inflation, employment, economic growth and world problems.

If microeconomics explains the structure and location of production, then macroeconomics explains its volume.

Subject of economic theory

The subject of economic theory is considered to be the analysis of a market economy.
Economics studies the impact of scarcity on social behavior.

Methods of economic theory

Method- this is a set of techniques, methods, principles with the help of which ways to achieve research goals are determined.

General scientific methods research ( formal logic- is the study of a phenomenon from the perspective of its structure (form)):

method of scientific abstraction: highlighting the most significant aspects of the phenomenon being studied and abstracting from everything random;
analysis: the phenomenon under study is divided into constituent elements;
synthesis: the dismembered and analyzed elements are combined into a single whole, the internal connection between the elements is revealed, the contradictions between them are clarified;
positive analysis: examines the interrelationships of economic phenomena as they exist (what are the consequences of a particular event already implemented in the economic field);
normative analysis: based on a study of how it should be (the question: should certain economic activities be carried out);
induction: the movement of thought from the particular to the general, on the basis of which logically deduced general provisions;
deduction: the movement of thought from the general to the specific;
comparison: determining the similarity or difference between phenomena and processes;
analogy: based on the transfer of properties of a known phenomenon to an unknown one;

Private Methods research:

use of graphs;
use of statistical, mathematical data;
economic experiment - a scientifically conducted experiment in the economic field with the aim of testing the effectiveness of planned economic activities;

Dialectical method knowledge was the main tool of Marxist political economy.

System method based on economic modeling.
Microeconomic models are formalized descriptions of economic phenomena and processes in order to clarify the functional dependencies between them.

Scientific method : formulation of objective laws and theories in order to be able to explain and predict events of interest to the researcher on their basis.

Functions of economic theory

Economic theory performs the following functions: theoretical, methodological, practical.

Theoretical function: Economic theory is common to all sciences; it clarifies the essence of processes and phenomena.
Methodological function:Economic theory acts as a theoretical foundation for specific branch sciences.
Practical function: allows you to analyze accumulated problems and draw conclusions for the right decision challenges facing society, thereby ensuring economic policy.

Methods for researching economic phenomena

Levels of research into economic phenomena

microeconomic analysis: research of consumers and firms at the microeconomic level;
Advantages: This approach can be attributed to its relative simplicity, accessibility and clarity. Flaws: neglect of the general economic equilibrium and macroeconomic effects.
macroeconomic analysis: studying aggregated values;
mesoeconomic analysis: research of consumers and firms taking into account macroeconomic influences (inflation, industry, region, state economic policy);

Mesoeconomics explores traditional microeconomic problems, taking into account the influence on the behavior of economic agents of macroeconomic variables: aggregate demand, inflation expectations, cyclicality, economic growth, etc.

ECONOMIC LAW is understood as a stable, repeating cause-and-effect relationship between economic processes, manifested as an objective necessity.

ECONOMIC LAWS are the laws of the development of production relations (or property relations) in their relationship with the development of productive forces.

Economic laws, like the laws of nature, are objective in nature. However, they differ significantly from the laws of nature, because arise, develop and act only in the process of human economic activity - in production, distribution, exchange and consumption. Moreover, unlike the laws of nature, economic laws are not eternal.

4.2. Systematization of economic laws.
The system of economic laws includes four types.

1. These are GENERAL economic laws, i.e. laws inherent in all social methods of production (the law of growth of labor productivity, the law of saving time, etc.)
2. SPECIAL - laws that operate in several socio-economic formations (the law of value, the law of supply and demand).
3. SPECIFIC economic laws that operate under the conditions of one social mode of production. The most important of them is the basic economic law, which expresses the connections in the process of interaction between productive forces and property relations.
4. PRIVATE - laws that operate only at one stage of the social mode of production. For example, the law of monopoly formation by concentration of production, which operates at the highest stage of development of capitalism, i.e. since the beginning of the 20th century.

4.3. Economic categories.
ECONOMIC CATEGORIES are theoretical expressions, mental forms of production relations, economic phenomena and processes that actually exist. These are specific concepts that reflect the economic characteristics of objects, phenomena, and processes.

They theoretically reflect, first of all, property relations in their interaction with the development of the system of productive forces. Since the content of the latter is the interaction of man with nature in the labor process, one side of the economic category is the individual areas of this interaction. Such categories, in particular, are labor, objects of labor, methods of labor, consumer value, product of labor, etc. The other side of the economic category is the relationship between people regarding the appropriation of various objects of property and the results of labor. Individual sections of these relationships are expressed in categories: money, price, value, salary, profit, rent, etc.

In addition, each law groups around itself a certain number of economic categories. For example, the law of value is revealed with the help of categories such as necessary work time, market price, price, etc.

Since economic categories are a theoretical expression of individual aspects of property relations in their interaction with the development of productive forces, the emergence of new forms of ownership is characterized by the emergence of new economic categories

TICKET 4.Property as economic concept. private property as the basis of a market economy. Forms of ownership.

Property in the ECONOMIC MEANING is economic relations between people that exist in production. After all, all production is property in the economic sense

The ownership of material goods is nothing more than the appropriation by people of the substance of nature and energy for the benefit of people. In this regard, the system of property relations has the following STRUCTURE: relations of appropriation, relations of economic use of property and relations economic realization property.

1) APPROPRIATION v is an economic connection between people that establishes their relationship to things as their own. Those. when someone says this garden plot mine¦, thereby characterizing the existing economic ties: who can and who does not have the right to claim his property.

The opposite of appropriation is the relationship of ALIENATION. They arise if some part of society seizes all the means of production, leaving other people without sources of livelihood. Or the products produced by some are appropriated by others. Such was the relationship between slave owners and slaves in Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome.

2) Sometimes the owner of the means of production does not himself engage in creative activities. He allows others to own his things under certain conditions. Then a relationship of ECONOMIC USE OF PROPERTY arises between the owner and the entrepreneur. The latter temporarily receives the legal right to own and use someone else's property (eg, lease, concession).

3) Property is ECONOMICALLY SALE when it generates income for its owner. This could be profit, taxes, various payments.

As you can see, property relations from beginning to end cover the entire economic process and permeate all relations in the production, distribution, exchange and consumption of useful goods.

Rights are determined by PROPERTY SUBJECTS - that is, legal and natural persons who have the right to own, use and dispose of property; and PROPERTY OBJECTS are production resources, material goods (means of production, securities, consumer goods, etc.).

If resources are in the hands of individuals ( individuals) or firms (legal entities), then this is private property.

Institute private property is the basis of a market economy. It is supported by the right of ownership, appropriation, disposal and use, including will, i.e. the right of the owner property appoint a successor after death.

Private own can perform in different forms: How individual, owned by an individual, collective, owned by a small group of individuals united in a partnership or joint stock company.

Hence the shareholder own? this is also collective own, but uniting the overwhelming number of individual (individuals) persons. Joint Stock own develops into a corporate own, uniting companies (free market economy)(legal entities).There are broad legal restrictions on the right private property. For example, it is prohibited by law to use any resources for drug production. IN market economy there is also a state own on some resources to ensure the effective functioning of the entire economy. Even in pure capitalism, the fact is recognized that for best use resources important role the state can play own on some “natural monopolies”: post office, railway transport, public utilities.

Interaction private and state property leads to the formation of mixed property, property which is recognized as dominant in economy developed and developing countries. The main forms of ownership are: private, collective (group) and public.

Private property occurs where the means and results of production belong to individuals. It gives rise to these individuals having a material interest in rational use material factors of production in order to achieve maximum economic effect.

Collective (group) property characterizes the ownership of the means and results of production separate group persons Each member of this group is a co-owner of the factors of production and the products produced. Group property includes communal, family, cooperative, labor collective property, etc.

Public property is a shared property, i.e., the ownership of certain objects by the entire society. This form of ownership functions as state property.

Based on the basic forms of ownership (private, collective and public), its derivative forms arise - joint stock, cooperative, ownership of the work collective, joint, etc. The property of such enterprises is formed on a share (equity) basis at the expense of funds and other contributions from individuals and legal entities who act as joint owners. Their income depends on the size of the contributed share and the results of economic activity. This is where personal and collective interests come together.

TICKET 5. Social production: concept, types, phases, factors, result.

IV. Traditional methods of medium and short-term financing.

R Therapeutic dose of laser radiation and methods for its determination

V. Methods and methods for disinfection and/or neutralization of medical waste of classes B and C

Automation of production, its importance and feasibility of implementation at enterprises in the Republic of Belarus. Equipment and means of automation of technological processes.

In the process of economic research they use a large number of methods and techniques. Let's look at the main ones.

The essence of the abstract method is that the researcher, when studying economic processes, can mentally abstract from the particular properties and connections between economic phenomena, focusing on the general features that characterize the essential aspects. The result of abstraction is the formation general concepts and laws in economics such as needs, resources, laws of supply and demand, etc. The formation of the conceptual apparatus of economic science creates the conditions for the analysis and synthesis of economic phenomena.

The method of analysis and synthesis is that in the process of cognition, the researcher first mentally decomposes the object being studied into its component elements, analyzes the features of each of them, then identifies the essential connections between them, and restores the dismembered object.

Thus, we can consider in detail all the factors influencing the value market supply of a given product, determine which of them influence an increase in supply and which lead to a reduction in supply, give all this a quantitative assessment. In the future, through synthesis, taking into account all the pros and cons, it is possible to predict the direction of change in the market supply of goods in the future.

At the same time, the researcher must avoid mistakes associated with the mechanical transfer of results that are correct for individual parts of the overall process, but unacceptable for the whole. For example, for a company, all other things being equal, the effective form of management is command-hierarchical. Managing a company requires strict subordination. The head of the company (manager), using a system of orders and instructions, organizes the process of production and sale of goods and services. At the same time, the extension of such a management system to the macro level and the creation of a command economic system within a country and a group of countries has shown its inconsistency.

In addition, when analyzing and synthesizing economic phenomena, the “all other things being equal” assumption is widely used. It means that all variable factors influencing economic results are divided into two groups: accepted in a given scientific research as unchangeable and actually variable factors. For example, when analyzing market demand for a product, we can proceed from the fact that the amount of demand is influenced by only one factor - price, abstracting from many other factors (the number of buyers, their tastes, the expected level of inflation, etc.)

A continuation of the method of analysis and synthesis is modeling. In economics, a model is a mentally constructed and described sample that reproduces in its main features a real economic process. One of the first economic models were the famous “economic tables” of the 18th century French economist F. Quesnay. In them, the author examined the proportions that must be observed in society when producing material goods. Subsequently, K. Marx, L. Walras, V. Leontiev and others were involved in modeling economic processes. Modern economic modeling widely uses mathematical apparatus, mathematical programming, probability theory, and mathematical statistics.

In the process of constructing economic models, functional analysis plays an important role. As you know from a mathematics course, a numerical function y=ƒ(x) exists if for some numerical set X the law ƒ is specified, according to which each number x from this set is associated with a single number y.

The independent variable x is called the argument of the function, and the dependent variable y is called the function. Moreover, if with an increase (decrease) in the argument the value of the function increases (decreases), then there is a direct connection between them. When an argument and a function change in different directions, there is feedback between them.

The functional dependence can be presented analytically (given by an algebraic formula), in the form of a table or graph.

The general form of analytical notation y=ƒ(x), where ƒ - a characteristic of a function indicating the actions that must be done with x to obtain y. For example, the equation y=a+bx shows that to obtain y we need to multiply the variable value x by the coefficient b and add the resulting product with a constant number a. The advantage of the analytical form of notation is its compactness and the ability to perform various mathematical operations that facilitate the search for function values. At the same time, the analytical approach does not provide a clear idea of the directions of change in the function. Thus, we know that, other things being equal, the quantity of demand for a given product (Qd) depends on its price (P). In analytical form this can be represented as Qd= f(P).However, it is difficult to determine from the formula in which direction Qd changes when the price increases or decreases.

The tabular form of recording functional dependence overcomes this drawback. It provides the ability to represent quantitative relationships between relevant variables. For example, in a table we can show the quantity demanded for a product at each price level. At the same time, the tabular form of recording is not without drawbacks: in the table the relationship between x and y is shown only for discrete quantities, which makes it difficult to identify the general trend of changes in y as x changes.

A graphical form is used to identify the relationship between argument and function for all x € X. The graph of the function y = ƒ(x) is the set of all points of the Cartesian coordinate system of the form (x; ƒ(x)), where x € X. Using the graph, you can easily find the value of the function for x € X.

The experimental method involves the artificial reproduction of any economic process. With the help of an experiment, one can identify its positive and negative aspects and assess the possibility and necessity of practical implementation. For example, the conveyor system of production organization, before receiving worldwide recognition, was tested in the automotive industry by G. Ford.

The creation of a command socio-economic system in our country in 1917 can be considered as a macroeconomic experiment. The reforms of the market economy, carried out in developed countries according to the recipes of Dmitry Keynes, M. Friedman, and other economists, were also experimental in nature.

The quantitative side of mass socio-economic phenomena and processes in their qualitative certainty is studied with the help of special statistical methods and techniques. Their widespread use in economics is due to the fact that in economic research, as a rule, one has to deal not with individual isolated facts, but with statistical sets of interrelated facts.

In economics, a statistical aggregate is understood as a set of any socio-economic objects that have common qualitative characteristics. In particular, when we introduce the concept of an entrepreneurial firm in microeconomics, we mean by it the entire set of organizations involved in processing resources into goods and services on a paid basis and delivering them to consumers. For all entrepreneurial firms certain qualitative features are characteristic: the desire to run a business profitably, the processing of certain economic resources, the orientation of activities to satisfy market demand, etc.

Overall methodology economic research has common roots with other natural and social sciences. Its fundamental difference from them lies mainly in the objects of research. Economics studies problems associated with the rational choice of economic entities (households, business firms, government agencies). This choice is based on a comparison of costs and benefits received.

Topic 2. " Economic systems. Contents of property relations"