What are the Branches of Economics

Economics is usually split   into two major branches:

• Microeconomics – Microeconomics  deals with individuals and markets.  It also deals with the decisions made by those individual agents.
• Macroeconomics – Macroeconomics is the study of international and national economy including all the individuals involved in the microeconomics.

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Apart from these main branches there are other smaller branches as follows:- 

Special Branches of Economics

Classical Economics

It is concerned with free markets operation and optimal allocation of resources with minimal intervention by the government. It failed to recognize the need of the government in the provision of public services. 

Neo-classical Economics

It is not only built on the free markets of classical economics but it further includes other ideas such as marginal analysis, utility maximization and the rational choice theory. It focuses on how individuals decide to choose the best option with the consideration of the marginal benefits and cost. 

Keynesian Economics

It was developed by Maynard Keynes during the great economic depression which persisted in the 1930s. He observed that market losses were being contributed by factors such as the paradox of thrift and the negative multiplier. He recommended that the government should intervene to restart the economy. He created macroeconomic discreteness because the aggregate economies operate separately from individual markets.

Monetarist Economics

 They proposed that the rate of inflation would be controlled by controlling the supply of money in the economy.

Austrian Economics

It mainly focuses on price controls and the free market. In a free market, factors such as customer preferences determine the prices of particular goods.

Marxist Economics

It focused on capitalism.  Capitalist would exploit the laborers by forcing to work for more hours than necessary so as to increase production without overtime  payment. Workers were not compensated as per the value of their labor. He emphasized on the need of the government to intervene in the free markets. 

Neo-Liberalism

It focuses on maximizing individuals` economic freedom and suggests that restrictions imposed by the government on trade should be eliminated. 

 Behavioral Economics – it focuses on the emotional and psychological factors that affect how individuals make economic decisions.

• Ecological Economics – it focuses on the relationship between the economy and the environment.
• Environmental economics – This is concerned with the development, distribution, and use of natural resources.
• Health economics – focuses mainly on both public health and private health care.
• Information economics – explains how an economy is affected by information systems and information itself.
• International Economics – economies are affected by the relationships of countries in trade. It entails the relations between countries in trade and investments and how it affects economies.
• Monetary economics – it focuses on the modes of payment such as e-money, plastic money, flat money etc. 
• Urban economics – economic tools are used to study the aspects of cities such as housing, crime, unemployment etc.