The Principles of Microeconomics course was developed through the Ohio Department of Higher Education OER Innovation Grant. This work was completed and the course was posted in December 2019. The course is part of the Ohio Transfer Assurance Guides and is also named OSS004. For more information about credit transfer between Ohio colleges and universities, please visit: www.ohiohighered.org/transfer.Content ContributorsKen Fah                                             Ohio Dominican UniversityJohn Fiske                                         Ohio Dominican UniversityJoe Nowakowski                                Muskingum UniversityLibrarianNathan Wolfe                                     Kenyon CollegeReview TeamMolly Cooper                                     Ohio State University Subbu Kumarappan                          Ohio State University ATI 

This lesson discusses why and how consumers make certain choices.  Based on standard neoclassical theory, students are introduced to the concept of utility, budget constraints, and indifference curves.  Given market prices and utility information, students will understand the implicit thought processes that lead to total utility maximization.  In cases when individual behaviors do not adhere to the predictions of standard economic theory, the lesson employs behavioral economics to explain how and when consumer choices might be different under certain conditions including limited information, psychological pricing, bounded rationality, nudges, and loss aversion. 

In this topic, students will be introduced to the concept of elasticity.  They’ll learn about price elasticity of demand and price elasticity of supply, about their determinants and how to calculate it.  They’ll be introduced to some applications of price elasticity.  They’ll also learn about two other important elasticity measures, cross-price elasticity and income elasticity.  

In this topic, students will be introduced to imperfect competition.  They’ll learn about monopolistic competition and oligopoly, about their characteristics are and about how they differ from perfect competition and monopoly.  They’ll also focus on the importance of the key features of monopolistic competition, product differentiation and advertising; and the key features of oligopoly, mutual interdependence, collusion and the game-theoretic approach to strategy.     

In this topic, students will be introduced to the elements of international trade. They’ll learn about the gains from trade and how they arise. They’ll learn the difference between absolute and comparative advantage and why comparative advantage is the key to profitable trade. They’ll also be exposed to the types of trade restrictions imposed by governments and the usual justifications for those restrictions.            

In this opening topic, students will be introduced to the fundamentals of economics including some important concepts and terms that they’ll use throughout the course. They’ll begin by learning about the basic problem in economics and how that problem is solved under different economic systems, including the market system. They’ll also be introduced to the idea of an economic model.     

In this topic, students will be introduced to monopoly.  They’ll learn what a monopoly is, how it differs from perfect competition and what conditions give rise to it.  They’ll also learn how monopolists decide on the profit-maximizing level of output and price.  The social costs and benefits of monopoly will also be covered.  In addition to monopoly, the topic will cover price discrimination.   

An analysis of how the private and public sectors interact, the role of taxes and how the decisions regarding their disposition are made, as well as the role of special interests and voting procedures. 

This topic covers the basics of demand and supply for a principles of microeconomics course.  Students will learn about the determinants of market demand and market supply for a good or service.  It enables students to employ an analytical tool in expressing the potential impacts of changes in market conditions on the consumers and sellers of a good or service.  It provides the basic tools to help students understand the impacts of policies that affect various economic units.

This topic presents an introduction to the economics of US healthcare, with a focus on the major players including consumers, providers, private insurance, and government.  It covers the challenges and opportunities for the US healthcare system including quality, costs, and access.  An application of supply and demand analysis to healthcare markets is discussed.  It compares U.S. health outcomes to those of other countries.  Students are introduced to various data sources on US and global healthcare.