ECC3800 History of economic thought
Faculty of Business and Economics
ECC3800 History of economic thought is a level 3, 6-credit-point, undergraduate unit from the Faculty of Business and Economics, offered in 2024 in Semester 1 at Clayton. It has no prerequisites.
- Credit points
- 6
- Offered in 2024
- Semester 1
- Clayton
- Assessment
- Exam 25%
- and 1 other task
- Workload
- 144 hours
- per semester
This is the 2024 handbook entry. See the 2027 entry.
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Overview
This unit covers the thought of the greatest minds in the history of the discipline of economics. Its main organising principle is the question: "what is the economic problem?" This unit organises the history of thought around two widely different answers. First, the classical economists starting with Smith, Malthus, Ricardo, and culminating with Marx, argue that the economic problem is about the production of surplus. Second, the neoclassical economists starting in 1872 with the writings of Jevons, Walras, and Menger, argue that the economic problem is about the efficient allocation of resources among competing ends. In addition, this unit covers issues related to the philosophy of science, moral theory, the limits of natural resources, social contract theory of the state, modernism, utilitarianism, evolutionary biology, and a secondary question that has been raised by Say's law and questioned by Keynes: is the market system stable?
Offerings in 2024
| Teaching period | Campus | Mode |
|---|---|---|
| First semester | Clayton | On campus |
Assessment
- Within semester assessment75%
- Examination25%
Learning outcomes
When you finish this unit, you should be able to:
- 1
discuss critically how different economists in the past understood and analysed the economic problem
- 2
compare the work on founders of economics such as Adam Smith, David Ricardo, Thomas Malthus, Stanley Jevons, Karl Marx, Alfred Marshall, and others
- 3
discuss critically diverse theories of value, growth, rent, and decline of economic society
- 4
be familiar with primary sources relating to the major writings that shaped the evolution of economic analysis.
Workload and teaching
- Seminars36 hours
- Teaching approachActive learning
Minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 144 hours per semester typically comprising a mixture of scheduled learning activities and independent study. Independent study may include associated readings, assessment and preparation for scheduled activities. You are expected to complete all pre-class activities prior to your scheduled class, and post-class activities should be completed after your scheduled class. Learning activities may include a combination of teacher directed, peer directed and online engagement activities.
This unit engages you in actively applying your knowledge, skills and attributes in interactive, collaborative and reflective activities.
Learning resources
Required resources
Yueh, Linda. The Great Economists: How Their Ideas Can Help Us Today. Penguin Books (2018).
Where it fits
ECC3800 is part of 2 areas of study in the 2024 handbook.
Contacts
- Chief Examiners
- Associate Professor Lionel Frost
Common questions
What are the prerequisites for ECC3800?
ECC3800 has no prerequisites.
When is ECC3800 offered?
In 2024, ECC3800 runs in Semester 1 at Clayton.
How much work is ECC3800?
The handbook expects about 144 hours of study across the semester. No students have rated its difficulty yet.
Does ECC3800 have an exam?
Yes. The exam is worth 25% of the final mark, alongside 1 other task.
Which majors and minors include ECC3800?
ECC3800 is part of Economic analysis and Economics.