How economists analyze real-world issues from overeating to organ transplants: "A wonderful introduction to economics for the layperson." — ChoiceWhen economists wrestle with issues such as unemployment, inflation, or budget deficits, they do so by incorporating an impersonal, detached mode of reasoning. But economists also analyze issues that, to others, typically do not fall within the realm of economic reasoning, such as organ transplants, cigarette addi...

The highly engaging introduction to thinking like an economist, updated for a new generation of readers.When economists wrestle with any social issue—be it unemployment, inflation, healthcare, or crime and punishment—they do so impersonally. The big question for them is: what are the costs and benefits, or trade-offs, of the solutions to such matters? These trade-offs constitute the core of how economists see the world—and make the policies that govern it.

The Economics of Crime presents a review of economic scholarly research in the ever-growing field of crime and punishment. Without using graphs or mathematical equations, Winter combines theory and empirical evidence relating to public policy concerns over a wide range of controversial topics such as the death penalty, racial bias in the criminal justice system, gun control, the war on drugs, fines versus imprisonment, policing tactics, and shaming punishments.In addition ...

Is file-sharing destroying the music industry? Should the courts encourage breach of contract? Does the threat of malpractice lawsuits cause doctors to provide too much medical care? Do judges discriminate when sentencing? With Issues in Law and Economics, Harold Winter takes readers through these and other recent and controversial questions. In an accessible and engaging manner, Winter shows these legal issues can be reexamined through the use of economic analysis. Using real-wor...

The Economics of Excess discusses both standard and behavioral economics as they apply to addiction, indulgence, and social policy.Chapter One provides a thorough discussion of economic models of addiction. The model developed in most detail takes into account both standard and behavioral approaches. The next three chapters examine specific indulgences: smoking, drinking, and overeating. The heart of this book is its comprehensive discussion of what is often referred to as...

The Economics of Excess discusses both standard and behavioral economics as they apply to addiction, indulgence, and social policy.Chapter One provides a thorough discussion of economic models of addiction. The model developed in most detail takes into account both standard and behavioral approaches. The next three chapters examine specific indulgences: smoking, drinking, and overeating. The heart of this book is its comprehensive discussion of what is often referred to as...

The highly engaging introduction to thinking like an economist, updated for a new generation of readers.When economists wrestle with any social issue—be it unemployment, inflation, healthcare, or crime and punishment—they do so impersonally. The big question for them is: what are the costs and benefits, or trade-offs, of the solutions to such matters? These trade-offs constitute the core of how economists see the world—and make the policies that govern it.

Simpler government arrived four years ago. It helped put money in your pocket. It saved hours of your time. It improved your children’s diet, lengthened your life span, and benefited businesses large and small. It did so by issuing fewer regulations, by insisting on smarter regulations, and by eliminating or improving old regulations. Cass R. Sunstein, as administrator of the most powerful White House office you’ve never heard of, oversaw it and explains how it works, why ...

Before the COVID‐19 pandemic, the idea of providing a basic income to everyone in Canada who needs it was already gaining broad support. Then, in response to a crisis that threatened to put millions out of work, the federal government implemented new measures which constituted Canada's largest ever experiment with a basic income for almost everyone.In this new and revised edition, Evelyn L. Forget offers a clear‐eyed look at how these emergency measures could be transformed into a ...

**An essential new edition―revised and updated from cover to cover―of one of the most important books of the last two decades, by Nobel Prize winner Richard H. Thaler and Cass R. Sunstein* More than 2 million copies sold* New York Times bestseller**Since the original publication of Nudge more than a decade ago, the title has entered the vocabulary of businesspeople, policy makers, engaged citizens, and consumers everywhere. The book has given rise t...

Why the free-market system encourages so much trickery even as it creates so much goodEver since Adam Smith, the central teaching of economics has been that free markets provide us with material well-being, as if by an invisible hand. In Phishing for Phools, Nobel Prize–winning economists George Akerlof and Robert Shiller deliver a fundamental challenge to this insight, arguing that markets harm as well as help us. As long as there is profit to be made, se...

Could you lose weight if you put $20,000 at risk? Would you finally set up your billing software if it meant that your favorite charity would earn a new contribution? If you’ve ever tried to meet a goal and came up short, the problem may not have been that the goal was too difficult or that you lacked the discipline to succeed. From giving up cigarettes to increasing your productivity at work, you may simply have neglected to give yourself the proper incentives.In Carrot an...