THE ROLE OF GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL IMPACTS
Weekly Learning Outcomes
This week students will
- Assess the government’s role in economics through government-mandated price-controls, taxes,
subsidies, and the resulting market outcomes. - Critique the political decision-making process and ensuing impacts on the economy.
- Interpret the GDP as a measure of overall economic performance.
- Examine business cycles and how they impact employment levels.
PragerU. (2016, August 8). Can the government run the economy? [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.prageru.com/video/can-the-government-run-the-economy/
• This video highlights the views of Steve Forbes, chairman and editor-in-chief of Forbes Media,
on the role that government should play in the economy. He explains why no one person or
group can “run” the economy, and why any attempt to do so can only make things worse. This
video provides a perspective on limited government intervention and will assist you in your The
Role of Government and the Impact of Politics assignment this week. This video has closed
captioning and a transcript.
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Articles
Dunson, B. H., & Stone, B. M. (2017). Unemployed versus “not in the labor force”: Is there a difference?
Journal of Organizational Psychology, 17(5), 64–108. Retrieved from http://www.nabusinesspress.com/
• The full-text version of this article is available through the ProQuest Central database in the
University of Arizona Global Campus Library. This article discusses detailed research that has
been performed on the unemployment rate. The article provides a review of unemployment by
age and race, and examines what is not included in the unemployment rate. This article
provides more information on the unemployment rate and may assist you in your
Unemployment discussion forum this week.
Fixler, D. J., Kanal, D., & Tien, P.-L. (2018, January). The revisions to GDP, GDI, and their major components.
Survey of Current Business, 98, 1–21. Retrieved from https://apps.bea.gov/
• The full-text version of this article is available through the EBSCOhost database in the
University of Arizona Global Campus Library. This article thoroughly dives into the components
of GDP and GDI (gross domestic income). The article challenges the accuracy of the
measurements. This article provides more information and a different perspective on the growth
of the economy and may assist you in your Gross Domestic Product (GDP) discussion forum
this week.
The International Economy. (2017, Fall). Does the conventional wisdom about productivity need to be
reconsidered? The International Economy, 8–27. Retrieved from http://www.internationaleconomy.com/
• The full-text version of this article is available through the EBSCOhost database in the
University of Arizona Global Campus Library. This article discusses productivity and the growth
of the economy. The article is quite interesting as it gives different views of this topic from a
leading economist. This article provides more information and a different perceptive on the
growth of the economy and may assist you in your Gross Domestic Product (GDP) discussion
forum this week
Liu, Z., Spiegel, M. M., & Tallman, E. B. (2018, May 29). Is GDP overstating economic activity? FRBSF
Economic Letter, 2018(14), 1–5. Retrieved from https://www.frbsf.org/
• The full-text version of this article is available through the EBSCOhost database in the
University of Arizona Global Campus Library. The article examines both GDP and GDI and
determines which measurement is more accurate and why. This article provides more
information on how GDP is measured and may assist you in your Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) discussion this week.
New Orleans CityBusiness. (2018, July 17). Op-Ed: Don’t be misled by the unemployment rate. New Orleans
CityBusiness. Retrieved from https://neworleanscitybusiness.com/
• The full-text version of this article is available through the ProQuest Central database in the
University of Arizona Global Campus Library. This article discusses the unemployment rate as
compared to the National Federation of Independent Business survey. The article gives insights
into the calculation of the unemployment rate and whether this is an accurate portrayal of the
economy. This article provides more information on the unemployment rate and may assist you
in your Unemployment discussion forum this week
CrashCourse. (2016, January 29). Market economy: Crash course government and politics #46 [Video file].
Retrieved from https://youtu.be/6yLY06tTQ1A
• This video examines how the government creates and maintains the market economic system.
The video provides the perspective of pro-government intervention and the necessity of
government due to the deficiencies in a free market. This video may assist you in your The Role
of Government and the Impact of Politics assignment this week. This video has closed
captioning and a transcript.
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Economic Policy Institute. (2016, June 21). A 21st century view of the role of government [Video file]. Retrieved
from https://www.epi.org/event/a-21st-century-view-of-the-role-of-government/
• This video is from an Economic Policy Institute meeting. The role of government in the economy
was discussed in detail by several experts who have differing views of how much the
government should interact with the overall economy. Prominent speakers include: Ann
O’Leary, senior policy advisor to the Hillary Clinton campaign; Jacob Hacker, professor of
political science at Yale and co-author of American Amnesia; Yuval Levin, editor of National
Affairs and author of Fractured Republic; E. J. Dionne, columnist with the Washington Post and
author of Why the Right Went Wrong; and Christian Dorsey, former author for the Economic
Policy Institute. This video may assist you in The Role of Government and the Impact of Politics
assignment this week. This video has closed captioning and a transcript that can be accessed
here: A 21st Century View of the Role of Government: Transcript.
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PragerU. (2016, March 14). Government: Is it ever big enough? [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.prageru.com/video/government-is-it-ever-big-enough/
• This video discusses politics from a conservative viewpoint, giving reasons why government
intervention should be minimized. The video provides the viewpoint of a conservative and points
out flaws of liberal politics as it relates to government spending. This video may assist you in
The Role of Government and the Impact of Politics assignment this week. This video has closed
captioning and a transcript.
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Discussion Forums
- Gross Domestic Product (GDP) [WLO: 3] [CLOs: 1, 2]. 1st Post Due by Day 3. Prior to beginning
work on this discussion,
• Read Chapter 7 of Macroeconomics: Private and Public Choice.
Define GDP in your own words. Additionally, address the following:
• What is measured and, just as importantly, what is not measured?
• What has GDP been for the latest three quarters here in the US?
• Why is GDP mentioned in business news so often and used as an important metric for our
economy? Is this number accurate? What are the pros and cons of this measurement?
• Explain how real GDP is different and how it is calculated.
Your initial response should be a minimum of 200 words. Graduate school students learn to assess the
perspectives of several scholars. Support your response with at least one scholarly and/or credible
resource in addition to the text.
Guided Response: Respond to at least two of your fellow students’ and your instructor’s posts in a
substantive manner and provide information or concepts that they may not have considered. Each
response should have a minimum of 100 words. Support your position by using information from the
week’s readings. You are encouraged to post your required replies earlier in the week to promote more
meaningful and interactive discourse in this discussion forum. Continue to monitor the discussion forum
until Day 7 and respond with robust dialogue to anyone who replies to your initial post.
Unemployment [WLO: 4] [CLOs: 1, 2]. 1st Post Due by Day 3. Prior to beginning work on this
discussion,
• Read Chapter 8 of Macroeconomics: Private and Public Choice.
For this discussion, address the following questions:
• How is unemployment calculated, and what is and is not included?
• What were the unemployment numbers for the latest three quarters?
• Why is unemployment mentioned in business news so often and used as an important metric for
our economy?
• What might cause the unemployment numbers to be questioned from an accuracy standpoint
and a relevancy perspective?
• How is unemployment impacted by the phases of the business cycle?
Your initial response should be a minimum of 200 words. Graduate school students learn to assess the
perspectives of several scholars. Support your response with at least one scholarly and/or credible
resource in addition to the text.
Guided Response: Respond to at least two of your fellow students’ and to your instructor’s posts in a
substantive manner and provide information or concepts that they may not have considered. Each
response should have a minimum of 100 words. Support your position by using information from the
week’s readings. You are encouraged to post your required replies earlier in the week to promote more
meaningful and interactive discourse in this discussion forum. Continue to monitor the discussion forum
until Day 7 and respond with robust dialogue to anyone who replies to your initial post.
Assignment
The Role of Government and the Impact of Politics [WLOs: 1, 2] [CLOs: 1, 3, 5]. Due by day 7.
Prior to beginning work on this assignment,
• Read Chapters 5 and 6 of Macroeconomics: Private and Public Choice.
• Read Chapter 3 of Popular Economics, What the Rolling Stones, Downton Abbey, and LeBron
James can Teach you About Economics.
• Listen to Steve Forbes’ insights on this topic by viewing the video Can the Government Run the
Economy?
• Watch the Q&A with Steve Forbes video.
• Research and review credible sources to gain an understanding of the pros and cons of
government intervention.
The role of government in the economy is often debated by economists and business people. The
debate ranges from having little to no government intervention to having a strong government presence
in both business and social settings.
Thinking through the pros and cons of government intervention, research and identify two government
agencies, departments, or regulations where the government is heavily involved in the economy that
you agree is helpful and necessary. Then, research and identify two government agencies,
departments, or regulations where the government is involved in the economy that you disagree with
and believe the free market would be better. Be specific in your selected government agencies,
departments, or regulations. It may be possible to use the same government agency, department, or
regulation for both sides. For example, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may have
regulations or interventions that you both agree and disagree with. Since EPA is used here as an
example, do not use it in your assignment.
For each selected example (four total),
• Assess the government intervention providing both the pros and cons.
• Discuss whether you agree with the government intervention providing facts and support for
your opinion.
• Thoroughly explain and support your rationale.
• Critique the influence of the political process (for example, lobbying) on each of your examples.
The Role of Government and the Impact of Politics paper
• Must be three to four double-spaced pages in length (not including title and references pages)
and formatted according to APA Style as outlined in the Writing Center’s APA Formatting for
Microsoft Word resource.
• Must include a separate title page with the following:
o Title of paper in bold font
Space should appear between the title and the rest of the information on the title
page.
o Student’s name
o Name of institution (University of Arizona Global Campus)
o Course name and number
o Instructor’s name
o Due date
• Must utilize academic voice. See the Academic Voice resource for additional guidance.
• Must include an introduction and conclusion paragraph. Your introduction paragraph needs to
end with a clear thesis statement that indicates the purpose of your paper.
o For assistance on writing Introductions & Conclusions as well as Writing a Thesis
Statement, refer to the Writing Center resources.
• Must use at least two credible sources in addition to the course text.
o The Scholarly, Peer-Reviewed, and Other Credible Sources table offers additional
guidance on appropriate source types. If you have questions about whether a specific
source is appropriate for this assignment, please contact your instructor. Your instructor
has the final say about the appropriateness of a specific source for a particular
assignment.
• Avoid over-dependence on direct quotes. Direct quotes are a great way to strengthen our
assertions and provide support. However, be sure to avoid using excessive direct quotes in lieu
of original thought. Direct quotes will not meet the requirement for analysis, application, and
critical thinking. Please ensure to not overuse direct quote so that you can avoid losing points
for this. Review the Integrating Research resource from the Writing Center for additional
guidance.
• Must document any information used from sources in APA Style as outlined in the Writing
Center’s APA: Citing Within Your Paper guide.
• Must include a separate references page that is formatted according to APA Style as outlined in
the Writing Center. See the APA: Formatting Your References List resource in the Writing
Center for specifications.
