Economic Theory, Applied Economics and Economic History provide the social scientist with wide areas of study.
Micro-economic theory is usually introduced through an examination of the principles of demand and supply and how prices are set under conditions ranging from perfect competition to monopoly. Macro-economics operates on a larger scale and deals, for example, with models which governments may use in determining monetary and fiscal policies.
Course books in Applied Economics need to be revised frequently since this area focuses on the actual policies which have been implemented in recent years. These may include attempts to control incomes, to promote regional development or to protect whole industries from overseas competition.
British Economic History is an especially rich field since we claim to have had the first agricultural and industrial revolutions, to have pioneered the canals and the railways and to have been one of the most important financial centres in the world. The subject also explores the conditions of the working class, the poor law and early examples of trade unions.