The National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center's video: Economic Paradigms and Public Goods: Self-Interest Rationality and Maximization

In this lecture, Dr. James (Jim) Boyd presents an overview of the philosophical underpinnings of economics, theories for setting market values, and perceptions by non-economists of economic analysis and research. He starts by highlighting three key theoretical assumptions made by economists—that individuals are self-interested, are rational, and work toward maximizing benefits. He stresses that economics is not just about maximizing money or profits, while emphasizing the balance of efficiency and equity that underlies economic analysis. He then presents the basic building blocks of economic analysis—supply and demand curves—and notes that there are many examples of economic activity where these curves and the preferences they represent do not adequately explain empirical outcomes. He ends with a discussion of public goods and the way to understand human decision-making that is less than optimal from an economic viewpoint.