AP ECONOMICS Topic : Economics Definitions

Definitions

Social Science and Economics

Social Science is defined as a branch of science that studies the society and human behavior in it, including anthropology, communication studies, criminology, economics, geography, history, political science, psychology, social studies, and sociology.
Economics is the branch of social science that deals with the production and distribution and consumption of goods and services and their management.
It is the study of how scarce resources are allocated to fulfil unlimited wants.

Microeconomics and Macroeconomics

Economics is usually divided into two main branches:
Microeconomics, which examines the economic behaviour of individual actors such as businesses, households, and individuals, with a view to understand decision making in the face of scarcity and the allocation consequences of these decisions.
Macroeconomics, which examines an economy as a whole with a view to understanding the interaction between economic aggregates such as national income, employment and inflation.
Economic growth is the increase of per capita gross domestic product (GDP) or other measure of aggregate income. It is often measured as the rate of change in GDP. Economic growth refers only to the quantity of goods and services produced.
Economic development typically involves improvements in a variety of indicators such as literacy rates, life expectancy, and poverty rates. It is a measure of welfare in the economy. Human Development Index (HDI) is one of the most commonly used development measure.
Sustainable development is a pattern of resource use that aims to meet human needs while preserving the environment so that these needs can be met not only in the present, but also for future generations. Economic development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Free goods and Economics goods

Free goods are what is needed by the society and is available without limits. The free good is a term used in economics to describe a good that is not scarce. A free good is available in as great a quantity as desired with zero opportunity cost to society.
Economics goods are consumable item that is useful to people but scarce in relation to its demand, so that human effort is required to obtain it.