1541 sats \ 10 replies \ @Undisciplined 23 Feb \ on: What is your ECON curriculum? econ
Start with Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt. That will give you the basics of how to see the world like an economist.
Then, if you really want a deep understanding, read Human Action by Ludwig von Mises.
From there, you'll have a solid foundation to branch out into whatever specific econ topics interest you.
What branch of economics is closest to parenting?
reply
My knee jerk response is attention economy, but I defer to the aficionados and experts for more fitting answers
reply
Care to elaborate?
reply
I was introduced briefly to this concept by Matthew B. Crawford in [The Cost of Paying Attention]
(https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/08/opinion/sunday/the-cost-of-paying-attention.html). He wrote a book on the idea, but I never got to it.
The gist of it if I remember correctly is that our attention is a scarce resource, and it is being hijacked by advertising in more Insidious ways than ever. We can't fill up our car with gas without being subjected to something like Entertainment Tonight on the pump.
My admittely flippant Idea that this has anything to do with parenting is that it takes a great deal of attention, and safeguarding and investing that attention into the family is a skill that may be taken for granted by some people who do it well, and a skill some families may benefit from adopting.
reply
I totally agree. Even if you are fully present in the moment, your attention is still fragmented because your children may have totally different needs. I will always remember how my son was clamouring for his diaper to be changed when I was feeling my baby girl milk!
reply
I thought it was something like that. I've heard it discussed in passing, but not any of the major takeaways.
That's definitely relevant to parenting and I believe Sensei has written about trying to manage his attention as a parent.
reply
Still at the rookie level!
reply
Probably Theory of the Firm. It's part of micro theory and deals heavily with principle-agent models. In the context of parenting, you and your wife are the principles and your kids are the agents. These models cover how the principle should structure incentives so that the agent will do what the principle wants. Appropriate incentives can vary widely depending on the situation.
There are some great books about parenting specifically, though.
- Bryan Caplan's Selfish Reasons to Have More Kids
- Emily Oster has three: Expecting Better, Crib Sheet, The Family Firm
I haven't finished The Family Firm, yet, but Emily's other two books are great resources for people just starting a family or with very young kids.
Bryan's book is a bit more technical, but I think it has the more profound message.
reply
I expected a much longer list from you, but then again, brevity is a mark of knowledge.
Thank you! I'll pick up Hazlitt to start.
reply
I have no end of recommendations, depending on your interests, but those are the two books I'd recommend to anyone.
Also, Human Action is a monster, so you could probably count it as about half-a-dozen normal books.
reply