Description

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The fully revised and updated fourth edition of the classic Common Sense Economics.

As the global economy recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic and debates over the future of work challenge our long-held preconceptions about what careers and the market can be, learning the basics of economics has never been more essential. Principles such as gains from trade, the role of profit and loss, and the secondary effects of government spending, taxes, and borrowing risk continue to be critically important to the way America's economy functions, and critically important to understand for those hoping to further their professional lives—even their personal lives. Common Sense Economics discusses these key points and theories and more, using them to show how any reader can make wiser personal choices and form more informed positions on policy.

Now in its fourth edition, this classic from James D. Gwartney, Dwight R. Lee, Tawni Hunt Ferrarini , Joseph P. Calhoun, and Jane Shaw Stroup has been fully updated to include commentary on the effects of the pandemic on the global economy and the workplace; it offers insight into political processes and the many ways in which economics informs policy, illuminating our world and what might be done to make it better.

About the Author

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James D. Gwartney served as chief economist for the Joint Economic Committee of Congress. A professor of economics at Florida State University, he holds the Gus A. Stavros Eminent Scholar Chair and directs the Stavros Center for Economic Education.

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Jane Shaw Stroup (who also writes as Jane S. Shaw) is a writer and freelance editor. She is chairperson of the Raleigh-based James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal, where she was previously president. Before that, Ms. Stroup was a senior fellow with PERC, the Property and Environment Research Center in Bozeman, Montana. Among other books, she coauthored with Michael Sanera Facts, Not Fear: Teaching Children about the Environment. Earlier, she was an associate economics editor of Business Week. She received her bachelor’s degree in English literature from Wellesley College and, in 2020, a master’s degree in history from North Carolina State University. She is a past president of the Association of Private Enterprise Education, an editorial adviser to Econ Journal Watch and CL Press, a member of the Editorial Advisory Panel of Regulation, and a member of the Editorial Advisory Council of the Institute of Economic Affairs (London). She is the widow of Richard L. Stroup, a previous coauthor of Common Sense Economics.

Dwight R. Lee is coauthor of Getting Rich in America. He holds the Ramsey Chair of Private Enterprise at the University of Georgia and is a past president of the Southern Economic Association.

TAWNI HUNT FERRARINI is the Sam M. Cohodas Professor of Economics and the Director of the Center for Economic Education and Entrepreneurship at Northern Michigan University.

Joseph P. Calhoun is a Teaching Professor in the Department of Economics at Florida State University and Director of the university’s Gus A. Stavros Center for the Advancement of Free Enterprise and Economic Education. He currently teaches principles of economics and personal finance classes. He created and leads Unconquered by Debt, an innovative financial wellness program sponsored by the Stavros Center. At no charge, undergraduate students can take workshops or use online resources to develop financial literacy. Dr. Calhoun regularly gives presentations at national teaching conferences on the effective use of media and technology in the classroom. A strong supporter of study-abroad programs, he has taught in Florida State’s international programs in England, Italy, and Spain. Dr. Calhoun has received numerous teaching awards at Florida State, including the university’s Undergraduate Teaching Award. His doctoral degree is from the University of Georgia.

Praise For…

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"Splendid and informed exposition of the basic principles of economics. The economics is sophisticated, the exposition simple, concise, lucid, and free from jargon."
—Milton Friedman, 1976 Nobel Prize winner

"The authors tell us what everyone should know about economics in language we can all understand. It's refreshing when four of the best in the profession avoid the all-too-common practice of writing in a code that only other economists can comprehend."
—Robert McTeer, former president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas

"Economics is not only fun and exciting, it's mostly plain common sense. The authors have done a yeoman's job in proving just that. Common Sense Economics not only is a fun, readable read but can serve as a handy and important reference for students, teachers, businessmen, members of the media, politicians, and trained economists."
—Walter E. Williams, John M. Olin Distinguished Professor of Economics at George Mason University (Virginia)

"This book forms a bridge between common sense and the basic principles of economics. It is a guide to sound economic reasoning for everyone. Its language is relatively simple, clear, and straightforward without being oversimplified and without sacrificing the really important insights and conclusions. It is a book with a strong message—economic progress is the result of competitive markets, of individual initiatives, and of the limited role of government."
—Václav Klaus, former president of the Czech Republic

"This book provides the ABCs of how the world creates wealth without anyone having to be in charge because of market incentives—people are free to specialize, and by focusing on what they can do best for themselves, do unintended good for the rest of us. There is no other route to human betterment and poverty reduction."
—Vernon L. Smith, 2001 Nobel Prize winner