Role of Economists
Economics, the social science dedicated to understanding how scarce resources are allocated in society, is a broad field of study tackling a variety of issues. These issues range from complex questions regarding the nature of global markets and globalization to comparatively simpler problems such as how a small business can best maximize its profits. Economists can be found among the ranks of academics, bankers, legal professionals and private firm-based employees. Economists, therefore, assume a variety of different roles in the practice of their profession.
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Academic or Theoretician
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As an academic or economic theorist, economists study phenomena such as markets and attempt to describe how they function. From these observations, they try to develop a set of laws and theories to describe how economic phenomena work. Generally, this role also requires a great deal of inter-disciplinary debate as economists try to pin down the causal rules of real-life economic events.
Historian
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The role of the historian is closely related to that of the academic. However, whereas some academics try to deduce static laws from historical events, economic historians try to understand economic events through the contextual lens of history, and vice versa. As historians, they try to develop narratives regarding how economic events have come about and what their role has been through the course of history.
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Analyst
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The descriptive role of the theoretician is often augmented by a prescriptive layer, wherein the economist will try to determine a course of action based on economic data. Analysts can be employed in the public or in the private sector, and their job is to analyze economic data so that public or private institutions can make better decisions about how best to allocate resources.
Policy Adviser
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As a policy adviser, economists function a lot like analysts. They use economic data to judge between alternative policies and decide which one will have the most desirable effects. However, policy advisers usually have a bigger role in making final decisions regarding policy, as their job is also to forecast the effects, both intended and unintended, of certain policies. This is most crucial on the public level, when legislators will often ask economists to decide from among a host of viable alternatives, choosing which one will best serve the public good or national interest.
Educator and Social Critic
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As an academic, economists also function as educators; they are usually employed by universities and are required to teach a certain amount of courses per semester. However, for economists, the role of educator often goes beyond the classroom and extends into the role of the social critic. Many economists write widely about political and economic issues in an attempt to educate the public and to criticize political and social institutions.
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