Chapter 2/Thinking Like an Economist ❖ 3
10. Which of the following statements applies to economics, as well as to other sciences such as physics?
Experiments are considered valid only when they are conducted in a laboratory.
Good theories do not need to be tested.
Real-world observations often lead to theories.
Economics, as well as other sciences, is concerned primarily with abstract concepts.
11. With respect to how economists study the economy, which of the following statements is most accurate?
Economists study the past, but they do not try to predict the future.
Economists use “rules of thumb” to predict the future.
Economists devise theories, collect data, and analyze the data to test the theories.
Economists use controlled experiments in much the same way that biologists and physicists do.
12. Economists face an obstacle that many other scientists do not face. What is that obstacle?
It is often difficult to formulate theories in economics.
It is often difficult and sometimes impossible to perform experiments in economics.
Economics cannot be addressed objectively; it must be addressed subjectively.
The scientific method cannot be applied to the study of economics.
13. In conducting their research, economists face an obstacle that not all scientists face; specifically, in economics,
it is often difficult and sometimes impossible to
make use of theory and observation.
rely upon the scientific method.
conduct laboratory experiments.
find articles or books that were written before 1900.
14. The use of theory and observation is more difficult in economics than in sciences such as physics due to the
difficulty in
performing an experiment in an economic system.
applying mathematical methods to economic analysis.
analyzing available data.
formulating theories about economic events.
15. Which of the following statements is (are) correct?
Relative to some other scientists, economists find it more difficult to conduct experiments.
Theory and observation are important in economics as well as in other sciences.
To obtain data, economists often rely upon the natural experiments offered by history.
All of the above are correct.