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The importance of research methodology
The importance of research methodology
The importance of research methodology
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Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything Book Report
Many people view economics as a dry and uninteresting subject. In the book Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything, co-authors Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner shows that the tools of economic research can be put to use in the study of almost anything. Levitt explains, “ since the science of economics is primarily a set of tools, as opposed to a subject matter, then no subject, however offbeat, need be beyond its reach.” (Levitt & Dubner 14) In Freakonomics, Levitt and co-author, Stephen Dubner, show how “Freakonomics” can be applied to some of the most interesting research topics that Levitt has tackled during his career. The authors
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boast that this book has no single, unifying theme, instead focusing on “the hidden side of everything.” (Levitt & Dubner 14) Freakonomics discusses a range of topics, from why drug dealers still live with their mothers to the myths of campaign finance.
Levitt’s research shows that by asking the right questions and knowing what and how to measure, one can explain the most complicated riddles of life. Levitt’s research reveals that not only that conventional wisdom is often wrong but also that incentives are a cornerstone of life. In Freakonomics, Levitt and Dubner take the tools of economics and apply them to a range of topics to answer simple, unasked questions.
There would be one main issue that would arise while teaching this book. Freakonomics covers some controversial topics such as abortion. Levitt’s research about the effect of abortion on crime and the inner workings of the Ku Klux Klan can be viewed as some as offensive and go against some student’s beliefs. Many of the conclusions that Levitt makes will challenge the prior beliefs of the reader. Students may focus and dismiss the conclusions of the individual studies rather than focus on the overall idea. The effects of this issue could be marginalized if this book is taught to older, more mature individuals. Comprehension-wise, this book is not that
difficult to understand and could be taught to students with little knowledge of economics. Freakonomics does a good job of making the correlation between the data and question easy to see. With that being said, the effects of this book could be maximized after the student has taken an economics class because of the unconventional way Levitt uses the tool of economics. This book should be taught during 12th grade. Seniors will have a general understanding of economics already in place as they have taken or will be taking an economics class. Another reason to teach Freakonomics to seniors is that they will be more mature in terms of the book’s sensitive topics. Students could learn a lot from this book. Freakonomics shows readers that asking the right questions can make issues a lot easier to solve. With their unconventional analysis and ways of looking at data, Levitt and Dubner can teach readers to think more productively and creatively. In addition to learning to learning about neat little connections such as the similarities between schoolteachers and sumo wrestlers, there are also core concepts that students can take from the book. One of the key concepts of the book is “knowing what to measure and how to measure it makes a complicated world much less so.” (Levitt and Dubner 14) All in all, Freakonomics is a thought-provoking book that can provide a compelling new view to how people understand the world.
Summary In chapter one of Freakonomics, the beginning portion of the chapter discusses information and the connection it shares with the Ku Klux Klan and real-estate agents. The Ku Klux Klan was founded right after the Civil War, in order to persecute and subdue the slaves that were newly freed. The popularity of the Klan increased in the early 20th century, around the time of World War I. In the late 19th century, the Klan had only discriminated, persecuted, and subdued Blacks, but in the 20th century they did these things to Blacks, Jews, and Gypsies.
Economics take part in many daily lives can be seen in the music people listen to. Harry Chapin’s “Cats in the Cradle” song is no exception. The song describes a young father trying to live up to capitalistic America’s economy and needs. Sometimes in life choices must be made. People respond to incentives put in place by Homo Economicus. For many, just as it is in the song, that incentive is money. The song states, “My child arrived just the other day. He came to the world in the usual way. But there were planes to catch and bills to pay. He learned to walk while I was away.” These lines relate to opportunity cost. The father had to give up one thing in order to achieve another. The opportunity cost is the time that the father lost watching his son grow up. He felt there was a higher demand for his job than for his time with his son. He chose to be on that plane and to be at a job that would keep him from his family. In his mind, the father used marginal analysis to make this decision. He simultaneously, even though he might not have realized he
On the front cover of Freakonomics, the subheading reads, “A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything,” which is the purpose of the book. The economist Steven Levitt and the author Stephen Dubner wrote this book using several rhetorical devices to achieve that purpose. A few of those devices, style, ethos, pathos, and logos, were prominent within the book and helped to convey the message and purpose well.
Written by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner, Freakonomics is built upon three major philosophies: incentives are the fundamentals of life, experts on a subject use their knowledge as an advantage to serve their own wellbeing, and orthodox wisdom is wrong most of the time. This book goes into detail to explain the mindsets of humans, from school teachers to sumo wrestlers, through statistics. Levitt and Dubner claim that when the data is closely examined it can relate to more concepts than originally hypothesized. The style of this informative piece is very precise yet, at the same time, very concise and to the point. The tone carried throughout the book is informative and knowledgeable. The authors use distinct tactics to get points across
The authors do eventually (pg. 205) acknowledge that some may see the book as trying to enrage the public just to sell books. In fact, Ron Levy, P...
Rather than just the content, it is the way in which it is presented that presents a major problem. Take, for instance, the fact that while the introduction to sociopaths occurs in Chapt...
Brue, S. L., Flynn, S. M., & McConnell, C. R. (2011).Economics principles, problems and policies. (19 ed.). New
And challenge my thinking, Levitt did. As Levitt states over and over again, everyone responds to incentives; or as Mr. Kilgo would say, “Everyone has an agenda.” Now this is true, everyone does have their own goals and wants that they strive for—they respond to incentives and have agendas. Between Freakonomics and Mr. Kilgo, that fact has thoroughly pounded itself in my head. Levitt, however, seems to constantly assume that everyone’s incentives are greedy and selfish. Real-estate agents, if not out to scam you, are simply lazy. Surgeons will usually recommend the more expensive procedure, even if a cheaper option is available. Experts will usually toss their hard-earned knowledge out the window for
There are a multitude of complex, intricate issues and problems that exist in modern day American society. In an effort to begin to fathom the complexity of such issues, society as a whole has created “conventional wisdoms” to explain the otherwise unexplainable phenomena. In addition, so-called “experts” on topics have tried to explain causes for such issues that may not even be causing them in the first place. Perhaps these causal hypotheses and conventional wisdoms are true, or perhaps there is more to the puzzle than meets the eye. In Freakonomics, Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner use juxtaposition and selection of details to convince readers to dig deeper into the world and find the truth behind what seems like reality.
... middle of paper ... ... They systematically do, and note this so that they leave nothing unexplored which may destroy their credibility, in turn making their claims loose. Revealing the hidden side of life in clarity, Freakonomics draws in economists with unmentioned assumptions which are upheld with reasoned correlation, bonding subjects that unveil misconceptions, concluding on economic pattern limitations.
This chapter's main idea is that the study of economics is the study of incentives. We find a differentiation between economic incentives, social incentives and moral incentives. Incentives are described in a funny way as "means of urging people to do more of a good thing or less of a bad thing", and in this chapter we find some examples public school teachers in Chicago, sumo wrestling in Japan, take care center in Israel and Paul Feldman's bagel business of how incentives drive people and most of the time the conventional wisdom turns to be "wrong" when incentives are in place.
It is a book that my child may never be able to read. It seems that the only logical reasoning to aid in what offends people is to completely eliminate the book from the library. A better approach is to understand that this book may help them examine other beliefs, attitudes, values, and traditions and to accept, tolerate, or even reject these ideas without prejudices against people who hold particular views. In the democracy In which we live, where regularly all ideas are debatable. A wide range on all points of view should be available to the public.
O'Sullivan, A., & Sheffrin, S. (2005). Economics. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall.
The crucial importance and relevance of economics related disciplines to the modern world have led me to want to pursue the study of these social sciences at a higher level. My study of Economics has shown me the fundamental part it plays in our lives and I would like to approach it with an open mind - interested but not yet fully informed.
Sullivan, A., & Steven M., (2003). Economics: Principles in action. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey : Pearson Prentice Hal