applying economic concepts to public policy development: course paper
Several economic concepts were covered in this course. A number of public policy development areas also were covered in this course. Among the economic concepts that were covered were (a) the supply and demand relationship and (b) the concept of externalities. Among the public policy development areas that were covered in this course were (a) decentralization and land use policies, (b) transportation policies, and (c) regional environmental policies.
One of the objectives that is pursued through the development of this paper is to show how the economic concepts (the supply and demand relationship and the concept of externalities) apply to each of the three public policy development areas that were identified in the preceding paragraph. A second objective that is pursued through the development of this paper is to demonstrate the interactive effects among the three policy areas that are explained by the application of the two economic concepts to the public policy development areas.
In the following section of this paper, the two economic concepts are reviewed. This review if followed by an explanation of how the economic concepts apply to each of the public policy development areas. The, the interactive effects among the three public policy development areas are explained within the context of a conceptual framework of the two economic concepts.
The Supply and Demand Relationship
Demand is a measure of the quantity of some factor that is needed or desired by one or more consumers. Market demand is aggregate of the requirements of all consumers for a factor. Demand framed differently is a schedule of the total quantities of a factor that purchasers will buy at different prices at a given time. A change in demand refers to the change in the quantity of a factor that would be purchased. Such change could occur because of ...