The questions of what and for whom to produce are decided. Economic system

An economic system is a form of organization of the economic life of a society.

Elements of the economic system:

Socio-economic relations. They are based on the forms of ownership of economic resources that have developed in each economic system.

Organizational forms economic activity(subsistence farming, commodity economy, etc.).

An economic mechanism is a way of regulating economic activity at the macroeconomic level, as well as a system of incentives and motivations that are guided by participants in economic life.

Specific economic ties between enterprises and organizations.

In any economic system, the economy solves 3 main questions:

What to produce?(That is, what goods and services, in what quantity, by what date).

How to produce?(What resources to use, in what enterprises, with the help, what technology, etc.).

For whom to produce?(That is, the target consumer group).

Question 4. The main types of economic systems and their characteristics.

Economic systems differ in:

The way to solve the main economic issues.

By the type of ownership of the most important types of resources.

From the point of view of these criteria, the following types of economic systems are distinguished:

Traditional system.

These economic systems existed mainly in the initial periods of human history. Major economic issues were decided on the basis of instinct. Now these systems are much less common (in the most remote regions of the world, in economically weak developed countries Oh).

Traditions, customs, heredity, class, rituals determine what, how and for whom to produce. Therefore, the given economic system is based on backward technology, widespread manual labor. Small-scale production is of great importance. It is based on private ownership of productive resources and the personal labor of their owner. Small-scale production is represented by numerous peasant and artisan farms that dominate the economy. The role of the state is active - providing social support to the poorest strata of the population. The natural-communal form of management prevails.

Administrative command system.

The state plays the main role in this system. It is it that decides what, how and for whom to produce with the help of centralized planning and management.

Specific traits:

Public ownership of all economic resources, monopolization of the economy.

The coordination of economic activity is carried out on the basis of a hierarchy, that is, an administrative method of subordination to a higher authority.

The management of the economy is carried out from a single center with the help of orders, direct commands.

The center gives instructions: what, how and for whom to produce, where to deliver the products, in what quantity, at what price. Consequently, the center must know in advance and determine all needs, all resources. On this basis, a directive plan for the development of the economy is drawn up for a certain period of time. Each employee is given specific tasks, and their implementation is strictly monitored.

Giant monopolies do not care about the introduction of new products and technologies.

A significant part of the resources is directed to the development of the military-industrial complex.

Examples of countries: USSR, Eastern European countries.

Practice has shown that such a system can be effective in extreme conditions, in extreme circumstances (war). However, in the long term, in a normal socio-political and economic environment, it cannot be effective. Consequences: the loss of moral and material incentives to work, the loss of a person's sense of the owner, equalization in pay, and therefore a decline in production. The economy is becoming ineffective.

Market system.

The market is a mechanism of interaction between sellers and producers, a balance of supply and demand.

Question "What to produce?" the consumer decides.

Question "How to produce?" is decided by the manufacturer. Under the pressure of competition, manufacturers are trying to innovate in order not to go broke, in order to reduce their costs.

Question "For whom to produce?"- v market system, for those who have money.

Thus, in a market system, the main means of coordinating economic activity is commodity-money relations and competition. Private property is predominant. This is a very tough system. For mistakes you have to pay with the "ruble", since mistakes lead to losses, ruin, bankruptcy. This system is based on the principle of economic feasibility, that is, on the desire to achieve maximum results at minimum costs. In a competitive environment, every entrepreneur tries to produce a better quality product, which means he seeks to introduce new technique and technology. All this contributes to the NTP.

However, this is not an ideal system and it has many disadvantages. As a result of competition, some are ruined and others are enriched, therefore, the property stratification of society grows. Social guarantees are minimal, since the state plays a small role, being only an arbiter who monitors the implementation of laws. Thus, high efficiency is combined with violation of the principles of equality and social justice.

Mixed system.

It should be borne in mind that in real life there is no pure market economy. It only exists in theory. In real life, modern economies in most developed countries are mixed.

Main feature mixed economy: both the state and the private sector play an important role in answering the questions: What? How? For whom to produce?

Planning methods are widely used in it: plans for the development of individual firms based on marketing research, specific government intervention. Plans of different economic levels affect the structure and quantity of products produced, ensuring their greater compliance with public needs.

The problem of using resources is solved within large companies also based on the analysis of promising industries.

Thus, the state in a mixed economy acts in many directions, (including financing of new, low-profit industries, retraining of personnel, development of medicine, social protection), influencing the economy, which increases sharply during periods of crises.

However, the market mechanism continues to play the main role in answering the classic three questions.

Farm organization models:

American model- This is a liberal market - capitalist model, which presupposes the priority role of private property, market - competitive mechanism, as well as a high level of social differentiation.

German model- a model of a social market economy, which links the expansion of competitive principles with the creation of a special social infrastructure that mitigates the shortcomings of the market and capital.

Swedish model Is a social model characterized by high level social guarantees based on broad income redistribution.

Japanese model- a model of regulated corporate capitalism, in which favorable opportunities for capital accumulation are coupled with the active role of government regulation in the areas of programming economic development, investment and foreign economic policy and with a special social significance of the intra-firm principle.

At all historical stages of human development, society faces the same question: what, for whom and in what quantities to produce, taking into account the limited resources. The economic system and the types of economic systems are precisely designed to solve this problem. Moreover, each of these systems does it in its own way, each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages.

Economic system concept

The economic system is the system of all economic processes and industrial relations, which has developed in a particular society. This concept is understood as an algorithm, a way of organizing the production life of society, which presupposes the presence of stable ties between producers on the one hand and consumers on the other.

The main processes in any economic system are the following:

Production in any of the existing economic systems is carried out on the basis of appropriate resources. some elements still differ in different systems. It is about the nature of the management mechanisms, the motivation of producers, etc.

Economic system and types of economic systems

An important point in the analysis of any phenomenon or concept is its typology.

Characterization of types of economic systems, in general, is reduced to the analysis of five main parameters for comparison. This:

technical and economic parameters;
the ratio of the share of government planning and market regulation systems;
property relations;
social parameters (real income, amount of free time, labor protection, etc.);
mechanisms of the system functioning.

Based on this, modern economists distinguish four main types of economic systems:

Traditional
Command-planned
Market (capitalism)
Mixed

Let's consider in more detail how all these types differ from each other.

Traditional economic system

This economic system is characterized by gathering, hunting and low-productivity farming based on extensive methods, manual labor and primitive technologies. Trade is poorly developed or not developed at all.

Perhaps the only advantage of such an economic system can be called a weak (practically zero) and minimal anthropogenic load on nature.

Command-planned economic system

A planned (or centralized) economy is historical type management. Nowadays, it is not found anywhere in its pure form. Previously, it was characteristic of the Soviet Union, as well as some countries in Europe and Asia.

Today, they often talk about the shortcomings of this economic system, among which it is worth mentioning:

lack of freedom for producers (commands "what and in what quantities" to produce were sent from above);
dissatisfaction a large number economic needs consumers;
chronic shortage of certain goods;
occurrence (as a natural reaction to the previous point);
the inability to quickly and effectively implement the latest achievements of scientific and technological progress (due to which Planned Economy always stays one step behind other competitors in the global market).

Nevertheless, this economic system had its own advantages. One of them was the possibility of ensuring social stability for one and all.

Market economic system

The market is a complex and multifaceted economic system that is typical for most countries modern world... Also known by another name: "capitalism". Fundamental principles this system is the principle of individualism, free enterprise and healthy market competition based on the ratio of supply and demand. Private property dominates here, and the main incentive to production activities the desire for profit is in favor.

Nevertheless, such an economy is far from ideal. The market type of economic system also has its drawbacks:

uneven distribution of income;
social inequality and social insecurity selected categories citizens;
instability of the system, which manifests itself in the form of periodic acute crises in the economy;
predatory, barbaric use natural resources;
weak funding for education, science and other unprofitable programs.

In addition, the fourth is also distinguished - a mixed type of economic system, in which both the state and the private sector have an equal weight. In such systems, the functions of the state in the country's economy are reduced to supporting important (but unprofitable) enterprises, financing science and culture, controlling unemployment, etc.

Economic system and systems: country examples

It remains to consider examples for which this or that economic system is characteristic. For this, a special table is presented below. The types of economic systems in it are presented taking into account the geography of their distribution. It should be noted that this table is very subjective, since for many modern states it can be difficult to unequivocally assess which of the systems they belong to.

What type of economic system in Russia? In particular, Professor of Moscow State University A. Buzgalin described modern economy Russia as a "mutation of late capitalism". In general, the country's economic system is considered to be transitional today, with an actively developing market.

Finally

Each economic system responds differently to the three "what, how and for whom to produce?" Modern economists distinguish four main types of them: traditional, command-planning, market, and also a mixed system.

Speaking about Russia, we can say that in this state a specific type of economic system has not yet been established. The country is in a transitional phase between a command economy and a modern market economy.

In this lesson, we will find out what are the main questions in economics, why it exists and how it tries to answer these main questions. We will also talk about economic efficiency and economic choice... We will try to show how the economy enters into the life of every person.

Topic: Economics

Lesson: Basic Questions of Economics

In the last lesson, we talked about the fact that resources are very limited, and the economy, in fact, is called upon to decide how to use these resources to the maximum benefit for humanity. All participants in economic processes are in one way or another in a state of choice: they choose which of the resources to use now, and which to use later, which goods to produce, etc. Accordingly, the economy arises three main questions to which she must respond: "What to produce?", "How to produce?" and "For whom to produce?"... The answer to these three questions is the answer to the main task of economic processes. Let's talk about each of them separately.

Rice. 1. Basic questions of economics ()

So the first question is - "What goods to produce?" It is clear that a person is a being who, living in a social environment, largely serves himself. Primitive people, of course, served themselves on their own. So, the primitive hunter made the items he needed for hunting: a spear, a bow and other things he needed. And in our time, each of us can do some things for ourselves on our own, or can get these things in a different way. They can give you something, something can be inherited, and you can buy something on the market. Thus, you create your life the way you want it to be. You can become an absolutely satisfied person, all your needs and desires can be realized, but society, alas, cannot live like this because of our limited resources.

That is why all manufacturers (they can be the state, private firms, even private individuals) are in a situation of constant choice which of the products they need to produce. It depends on what exactly will be in demand in the near future. Over time, the demand for certain goods changes. A century or two ago, some things were absolutely necessary, but now the need for them has disappeared, among other things, they have become archaic. An example of such a thing is bast shoes.

In a situation of choice, manufacturers strive not only to gain momentary benefits, but also to lay the foundations for their future production. They strive to increase their profits in the future, anticipating the needs of society that may arise.

Of course, it is very profitable for all manufacturers to produce those services or goods that cannot be refused. After all, a person cannot refuse food or clothing. But the essence of the economy lies in the presence of competition, in the confrontation between different manufacturers, so that the consumer has the opportunity to choose whether to buy at a lower price or to buy at a higher price. By the way, it should be explained why things are generally cheaper or more expensive. This is because the manufacturer always decides how to produce the goods.

Rice. 3. The essence of the economy is competition between manufacturers ()

So we come to the second question - "How to produce goods and services?"... There are always a variety of ways and opportunities to produce the same product or service. The way it is made, the decisions that manufacturers make in the course of manufacturing the goods, depend on what the final product will be like. One way or another, any manufacturer makes sure that his solutions are the most effective. And under economic efficiency understand the product of a given volume of a finished product at the lowest cost of limited resources. Having understood this relationship, we can understand why this or that product has such a price. The manufacturer always seeks to reduce the cost of its production, but in no case wants to reduce its profits. This is the basis of any production, on this balance there is an economics of production.

However, there is also a third question, which we have outlined today - "For whom to produce goods and services?"... It is clear that we all have different desires, we have different possibilities. By producing any product, the manufacturer seeks to please the interests of the broad masses of the population. But it is simply impossible to do this with the help of any one service or product. That is why each of the manufacturers strives to either narrowly specialize or produce a wide range of goods and services for various social strata. It does not matter if it is a physical product or a service that has no physical expression, because it also has a value and brings profit to the manufacturer.

So, in order to obtain correct answers to the main questions of the economy, it is necessary to know the capabilities of the economic system, the state of the market, the factors of formation of demand and supply.

As you can see, three main economic issues put human society in a state of choice. One way or another, we have to choose where to produce, how to produce, what to produce, for whom to produce. This question is painful every time, because for some time the production of some things and services can be profitable, but then it ceases to be so. It should be understood that almost every day manufacturers are in limbo, because it is very difficult to determine the exact priorities of a person. There is a possibility that our outlook on life will change and the need for an item or service will disappear. You can give a lot of examples in the history of mankind, when some important and interesting things that a person used, eventually came to naught. This is life, this is the economy.

Consider why the quality of the goods produced is different. One and the same thing on the market can have completely different cost depending on its quality. Let's take pens as an example. This is a common everyday object that you are familiar with. But even it can cost completely differently. You can buy a simple and inexpensive ballpoint pen that you will use every day, or you can buy a very expensive gift pen for special occasions. But, nevertheless, it is still the same pen, writing instrument.

Rice. 4. Simple or gift, - the pen is just a writing instrument ()

So where does this price difference come from? It's about human interests and desires. The manufacturer initially focuses on a specific customer. People's tastes are varied: some have more craving for luxury and a desire to surround themselves with expensive items, while other people just need to have simple and multifunctional items at hand. From the point of view of the manufacturer, it is a person with a craving for luxury, unusual things who is the buyer who is willing to pay large amount for the same item. The most expensive items and services are focused on it. For example, a watch can be simple in design, or it can become a complex elite item that has a lot of additional functions and indicates the high social status of its owner. The need for them is very conditional, but the owner of such watches is proud that he has them.

Rice. 5. An expensive watch is more of a luxury than a necessity, but the owner is proud to own it ()

We all surround ourselves with the things and objects that we need. This is how we build our own life. This is how the economy enters the life of every person.

Bibliography

1. Kravchenko A.I. Social Science 8. - M .: Russian word.

2. Nikitin A.F. Social Science 8. - M .: Bustard.

3. Bogolyubov L.N., Gorodetskaya N.I., Ivanova L.F. / Ed. Bogolyubova L.N., Ivanova L.F. Social Science 8. - M .: Education.

3. Site for professional traders ().

Homework

1. Explain what cost effectiveness is.

2. Describe three main economic issues.

3. * Imagine that you have been inherited the right to own a chain of confectionery factories. Answer the main economic questions: what exactly will you produce, how and for whom.

The main problem of economics can also be presented as a problem of choice. Indeed, if each factor used to meet various needs is limited, then there is always the problem of alternative use and the search for the best combination of production factors, that is, the problem of choice. This problem is reflected in the statement three main questions economy.

Three main questions of economics:

What? – goal setting problem... - Which of the possible goods and services should be produced in this economic space and at this time?

How? – production problem.- For what combination of production resources, with the use of what technology should be produced selected from possible options goods and services?

For whom? – distribution problem.- Who will buy the selected products and pay for the benefits? How should the gross income of society from the production of these goods and services be distributed?

The fourth question, which also inevitably arises before every society, is the question: How? How to get rid of waste generated in the process of life, how, without reducing the level of consumption, to maintain the ecological balance in nature. This disposal problem.

5. Production opportunities in the economic system and the problem of choice.

The production capabilities of the economic system are limited by the scarcity of the resources used. Moreover, the limitedness of all economic resources remains and even increases with the development of society. This is due not only to the depletion of irreplaceable natural resources, but also to the fact that consumption constantly gives impetus to the development of production, that is, new goods and services are created, they change. quality characteristics, which causes an increase in demand for consumer and investment goods. And each time society is forced to decide which of these goods to produce with available resources and on what scale.

The problem of choice in any economic system (be it a family, a firm, a state) can be illustrated using economic model "Frontier of production possibilities"... And also, this model allows you to clearly demonstrate such fundamental economic concepts as limited resources, alternative costs.

To build a model, we will plot the number of consumer goods (X) on the abscissa axis, and the number of means of production (Y) on the ordinate axis (see Fig.).

Capital goods (Y)

Consumables (X)

O X B X C

ABCD curve, called production frontier, characterizes the maximum possible volumes of production of means of production and consumer goods with the full use of all available resources. Each point on this curve represents a certain combination of these two types of goods (for example, point B represents a combination of X B units of commodities and Y B units of capital goods.

The production possibility frontier graph illustrates the fact that an economy that fully uses productive resources cannot increase the production of any good without sacrificing another good. The functioning of the economy on the border of its production capabilities testifies to its effectiveness.

Based on this, the choice of the combination corresponding to point F is regarded as unfortunate for a given society, since it does not allow it to efficiently use production resources. Choosing such a point, we would accept either the presence of unused resources (for example, unemployment), or low efficiency of their use (for example, with large losses, including working time). Production on the basis of the choice of point E is generally unfeasible, since this point lies beyond the production possibilities of this economic system.

Let's compare points B and C. By choosing point B, we prefer to produce fewer commodities (X B) and more means of production (Y B) than choosing point C (X C, Y C). More precisely, when moving from point B to point C, we will additionally receive Δ X = OX C - OX B units of consumer goods, donating for this ΔY = OY B - OY C units of means of production. The amount of one product that must be donated to increase the production of another product per unit is called alternative costs or the cost of missed opportunities.

The ABCD curve is convex. This is due to the fact that one resource can be used more productively in the production of consumer goods, others - means of production.

If new technology, new technological processes are introduced simultaneously and evenly in all industries, then the production possibilities frontier AD will shift to the position of the dotted line А 1 D 1, the possibilities of output of both means of production and consumer goods with the same resources will increase approximately equally ( see figure).

If innovations are carried out mainly in the industries that produce the means of production, the increase in the area of production opportunities will be skewed to the right (see Fig.).

The main economic task is to choose the most effective variant of the distribution of production factors in order to solve the problem of limited resources and the infinity of human desires. This position is reflected in the formulation of three main questions of the economy.

1. What to produce, i.e. which of the possible goods and services should be produced in a given economic space at a given time;

2. How to produce, i.e. under what combination of resources, and with the use of what technology the goods will be produced;

3. For whom to produce, i.e. who will pay for these goods and services, who will extract useful properties from them, and how the income of society will be distributed.

At solving the question "what to produce?" let's take advantage of the curve of production possibilities.

Production Capability Curve (transformation curve) is a graphical representation of various combinations of the production of goods with the maximum use of available resources and the existing level of technology.

Let's consider an example:

Plotting the data on a graph, we get the curve of production capabilities (Fig. 1).

Rice. one. Production Capability Curve

The graph shows a production possibility curve, each point of which shows the quantity of goods. X produced with the full use of all available resources, in exchange for goods Y ... Points A, E and F represent the production capabilities of society in the production of goods X and Y ... Dot B shows that production is organized inefficiently and there are unused resources, for example, labor. Points C and D show the level of production unattainable with this technology. Such "super efficiency" in conditions of limited resources is possible only with the improvement of technology.

This example illustrates the concept of opportunity cost. Alternative cost a good or service is the value measured in terms of the lost opportunity to engage in the best available alternative activity, requiring the same time or the same resources.

The opportunity cost is equal to the following concepts: replacement cost, opportunity cost, opportunity cost, opportunity cost, loss of profit, value of the preferred option.

Product opportunity cost X calculated by the formula:

AI X =,

where is the reduction in product output Have , а - increase in product output X .

If Y (X) - the equation of the production possibility frontier, then the opportunity costs of the product X are equal to the modulus of the value of the derivative of this function. The opportunity costs of the product are determined in a similar way. Have .

The shape of the production opportunity curve is associated with the influence of the economic law of increasing imputed costs with an increase in the production of any good or service.

The Law of Rising Opportunity Costs states that as the economy produces more of a given product, the opportunity cost of the additional unit produced, expressed in the ability to produce another product, increases.

Solution of the question "how to produce?" associated with the choice of a particular technology and necessary resources... The manufacturing process is seen as the transformation of resources into products. The technological dependence between the structure of resource costs and the maximum possible output is expressed using the production function.

Production function- the relationship between a given volume of production and the cost of factors of production.

Depending on the prices of the resources and the technologies used, manufacturers choose different combinations of resources. Finding the cheapest way to create a product is an important part of their business. This problem also faces the entire economy, since the efficiency of the national economy largely depends on its solution.

A key consideration in deciding how to produce is resource allocation efficiency or Pareto efficiency.

Efficiency Pareto- this is a level of organization of the economy at which society extracts maximum utility from the available resources and technologies, and it is no longer possible to increase someone's share in the result obtained without reducing the other . When efficiency is achieved, then more goods can be produced at the cost of losing the ability to produce something else, if the factors of production and knowledge are unchanged. However, production efficiency can be increased by improving the social division of labor. Its important characteristics are specialization and cooperation, allowing to take into account comparative advantages in the production of goods.

Comparative advantage is the ability to produce a good or service at a relatively lower opportunity cost.

The third key economic issue is the distribution of the produced product among the members of society. It can be viewed both in terms of efficiency and in terms of fairness.

Distribution efficiency- a situation in which it is impossible to satisfy the desire of one person more fully by redistributing the existing amount of benefits without harming the satisfaction of the desires of another person .

Equity in distribution interpreted in different ways.

Let's highlight three concepts:

1. Equal distribution;

2. Distribution based on the principle "according to work";

3. Distribution depending on the contribution to production of economic resources (for example, in proportion to the labor and capital invested in the business).

The questions of what, how and for whom to produce are basic and common for all types of farms, but different economic systems solve them in their own way.