A basic paper on economics can focus on the evolution of economic theory since the end of the feudal period. Among the major figures on which to focus this paper are Adam Smith, Karl Marx, Thomas Malthus, Kenneth Galbraith and John Maynard Keynes. The paper could be written to analyze the major theories since the 1700s or could take the argumentative approach that one system is preferable over the others.
Another basic economics paper could provide a comparison and contrast of the major economic theories at work in the world since the Industrial Revolution. Those major theories include capitalism, democratic socialism, fascist economics and totalitarian communism. An effective thesis would be one that attempts to prove that the most equitable economies are those that provide a balanced mixture of opposing theories.
The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is one of the leading economic indicators utilized by the government and media to portray a snapshot of how well the United States is doing economically. The manner in which this information is collected and manipulated has led to criticism that it is a flawed system providing an inaccurate portrait of the overall economic health of the country. You could write an argumentative paper on the GDP that reveals the flawed mechanics of calculation or a research paper that answers this criticism by revealing that the GDP has historically been a relatively accurate barometer of economic conditions.
Supply-side economics became the prevailing economic policy during the two terms of President Ronald Reagan. The foundation of supply-side economics is the trickle-down theory, which states that creating wealth for the rich eventually trickles down to the middle class and lower class. Statistical data on trickle-down economics has now been available for more than 30 years. Write a paper that uses these statistics to argue that supply-side economic theory either has or hasn't been realized in fact.
A key component of some economic theories lies in the power of the worker being equal to the power of the owner of the means of production. The centerpiece of this construct has historically been in the power of the union to make demands or halt that means of production through a strike. The power of unions in the United States has been decreasing since the end of World War II. Write a paper that reveals whether the real economic status of the average American worker has increased or decreased as a result of a decrease in the influence of labor unions.