Managerial Economics

Author: Dai Yuxian, Chen Suxing, Tang Xuemei (editors)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-12-01
Features: This book is based on the practical needs of enterprise management in China, keeping pace with the times, and comprehensively and systematically elaborates on the theory, methods, and applications of managerial economics. It emphasizes the close integration of theory and practice, covering the main fields and theoretical frontiers of modern managerial economics. The book features novel content, rigorous theory, innovative concepts, practical methods, and an appropriate level of difficulty. To meet teaching needs, targeted theoretical reflection questions, practice exercises, and computer-based practical exercises using Excel software are provided for each chapter, as well as typical case studies to cultivate students' problem-solving skills. Additionally, a CD-ROM with Excel-based computer experiments is included. A teaching reference CD-ROM containing multimedia teaching materials, various types of question banks, reference answers and solutions to typical problems, case analyses, and Excel-based computer experiment tutorials is also being developed to enhance the practicality and operability of the teaching system.
This book is designed for undergraduate and vocational college students majoring in business administration, marketing, and economic information, as well as for management personnel engaged in enterprise operations and management and postgraduate students in economic management-related fields as supplementary reading and self-study materials.
The sound of history has struck the 21st century. China has joined the WTO, and its economy has begun to integrate into the global economy. The world is watching China. After more than 20 years of economic reform, the prototype of China's socialist market economy system has gradually taken shape in the East. The sustained high-speed growth of China's economy has brought vitality to Chinese enterprises and provided broad prospects for the growth and development of Chinese management talent. The times call for professional managers who can navigate the international market, as well as entrepreneurs, economists, management professionals, and civil servants who master market economy theory. China's reform and opening-up require a large number of talents. Talent development relies on education, and high-level education urgently needs first-class teaching materials that align with international standards while being suitable for China's realities, especially for undergraduate and vocational college students, for whom such teaching materials are relatively scarce.
To meet this market demand, teachers from universities who are committed to teaching economic management subjects have voluntarily formed the writing team for this book. Through market research and combined with years of experience in teaching managerial economics, we have positioned this book as an applied and practical textbook for managerial economics. The book has the following features:
First, comprehensive and novel content. The core content of managerial economics for undergraduate teaching includes supply and demand, production decision analysis, cost theory, corporate profits, market structure, pricing decisions, and the role of government in the market economy. As an expansion of the managerial economics perspective, the book provides a detailed introduction to investment decision-making and risk analysis and game theory and competitive strategy selection. The renowned economist Jean Tirole once said, "Just as rational expectations revolutionized macroeconomics, game theory has profoundly changed the way economists think." Game theory has equipped businesses with a powerful tool for competition and cooperation in the market economy. Through theoretical learning, managers can develop an economic intuition, and with the penetration of rational thinking, they can analyze business decision-making problems in practice. This is a necessary economic thinking ability for any high-quality manager.
Second, a combination of theory and practice. How to learn from and utilize the reasonable core of Western managerial economics theory to create a managerial economics with Chinese characteristics that promotes and guides the development and improvement of the socialist market economy system is one of the purposes of studying this course and writing this book. Managerial economics is an applied economics that applies economic principles to business management decision-making and optimizing decision solutions. It includes both microeconomic principles and methods and decision-analysis tools and techniques, as well as both qualitative and quantitative analysis. This discipline has three points of integration between theory and practice: First, combining the theory of managerial economics with the actual business decision-making of enterprises. This book achieves this through typical case studies and assignments. Second, combining the rational analysis of managerial economics with mathematical analysis. We achieve this through numerous calculation examples and exercises at the end of each chapter. Third, combining the theory, methods, and computer software tools of managerial economics. For some calculation methods, complex typical examples, or cases requiring dynamic data and graphical analysis, software like Excel can provide accurate and efficient solutions, which greatly helps readers deepen their understanding and application of the theory.
Third, forming a scientific teaching and learning curriculum system. Most textbooks serve as blueprints for teaching and learning and are essential in teaching practice. Therefore, designing a scientific curriculum teaching system based on the objective laws and procedures of teaching is particularly important. The structure of this textbook is designed so that each chapter begins with an outline, key points, and difficulties; each chapter ends with a summary, case studies, theoretical reflection questions, practice exercises, and computer-based practical exercises; and each chapter includes theoretical explanations, examples, case studies, and calculation methods. This structure is arranged to align as closely as possible with teaching principles. At the same time, as an extension of this textbook, we have created a multimedia CD-ROM containing interactive multimedia teaching materials, various types of question banks, some reference answers, typical case analyses, and some Excel-based computer experiment tutorials. This can further broaden the perspective of managerial economics and facilitate teaching and learning.
Learning requires effort and interest. Through these efforts, we hope to make managerial economics, which may seem mysterious and highly theoretical, more approachable, enabling readers to delve deeper and develop the ability to analyze business management decision-making in an abstract and theoretical manner. We aim to cultivate students' ability to apply theories and methods to solve practical problems. If this book can serve as a stepping stone for this purpose, we will be extremely gratified.
Chapters 1, 6, 7, 8, and 11 were written by Associate Professor Dai Yuxian (School of Business Administration, Hunan University). Chapters 3 and 4 were written by Associate Professor Chen Suxing (Central South University). Chapters 2, 5, 9, and 10 were written by Teacher Tang Xuemei (PhD student, Central South University). The entire book was edited by Associate Professor Dai Yuxian.
During the publication process, this book received support and assistance from academic colleagues such as Professor Liu Jingnan, President of Wuhan University, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Doctoral Supervisor; Professor Chen Shou, Vice President of Hunan University and Doctoral Supervisor; Professor Xie Chi, Executive Dean of the School of Business Administration, Hunan University, and Doctoral Supervisor; Professor Lu Xiangguang, Director of the Management Department, Hunan University of Economics and International Business; and Associate Professor Zeng NanGui, Director of the Computer Science Department, Hunan University of Economics and International Business. We also received strong support from the leaders and editors of China Development Press. Additionally, we referenced and cited the works and literature of some domestic and international peers. Here, we extend our sincere gratitude to all scholars, colleagues, and friends who have helped with the publication of this book.
Due to the limitations of the authors, shortcomings and errors in the book are inevitable. We sincerely hope that scholars, colleagues, and teachers and students using this textbook will kindly provide criticism and corrections.