Jean Tirole, Economics for the Common Good

Abstract. The economics discipline is a dynamic, foundational field in the social sciences. With a host of scholars eager to share the knowledge they create with the general public, the discipline addresses how scarce resources are allocated to meet human needs and objectives. Since resources are scarce and societies have to make tradeoffs between competing ends, economics offers a unique set of tools to address many of society’s most pressing concerns. Furthermore, it is common that once a scholar wins a Nobel Prize in economics that they produce a book for a broader public audience to explain their ideas. Keywords. Role of economics, History of economic thought, Economic methodology. JEL. A10, B00, B40.