Introduction to Economics
1.1
Every IB Economics paper rests on the ideas in this unit, so examiners treat it as fair game inside almost any data-response or essay question, not just as a start-of-course warm-up. Two threads run through it: the theoretical toolkit (scarcity, opportunity cost, the PPC, positive vs normative reasoning) that frames how economists think, and the evidence toolkit (types of data, reliability, the Gini coefficient) that frames how they gather proof for real debates like Kenyan poverty measurement or Vietnam's GDP figures. Trade protection sits here as the worked case of government intervention distorting the price mechanism — get fluent labelling those diagrams with actual numbers, because that is exactly where marks are won or lost.
Overview
What this topic actually is
'Introduction to Economics' is not filler before the 'real' content starts — it supplies the vocabulary and reasoning habits examiners assume you already have by the time a Section 3 (international) or Section 4 (development) question drops a Gini coefficient or a tariff diagram in front of you. It splits into four working parts: how economists reason (models, ceteris paribus, positive/normative), what the discipline studies (scarcity, choice, the PPC, economic systems), how governments distort trade (tariffs, quotas, subsidies), and how economists collect and judge evidence (data types, reliability, inequality measures).
The shape of the chapter
Command terms that dominate this topic
| Command term | What it demands | AO | Mark-earning move |
|---|---|---|---|
| Define | State the precise meaning of a term. | AO1 | 1 mark for the technical definition; if the question says 'using one of the datasets above as an example', a SECOND mark requires you to name the matching dataset explicitly. |
| Distinguish | Give the point of difference between two terms. | AO2 | Must state the difference directly in one sentence — two separate stand-alone definitions with no explicit contrast caps the mark at half. |
| Explain | Give a reasoned chain of cause and effect. | AO2 | Needs a mechanism (because... therefore...), not just a labelled diagram or a bare assertion. |
| Analyse | Break down and examine components/implications. | AO3 | Wants developed reasoning (2+ linked points) but no final judgement on desirability. |
| Evaluate | Weigh significance/validity and reach a judgement. | AO3 | Top band requires an explicit weighed conclusion tied to the specific context given, not a generic 'it depends'. |
| Discuss | Present multiple sides of an issue. | AO3 | Needs genuine balance — one-sided answers lose marks even if the single side argued is well developed. |
Key point
Overview