Definition of Macroeconomics
Economics as a Social Science can be divided into two fields according to the magnitude of its object of study: Microeconomics and Macroeconomics.
While the first deals with the decisions that can be made by different economic agents (a family, a company or a sector), Macroeconomics focuses its interest on the behavior of an economy as a whole, whether it is local, regional, national or global.
To analyze this behavior, Macroeconomics focuses its attention on a set of variables that we call Economic Aggregates. These economic aggregates, or macromagnitudes, allow us to quantify variables such as national production, income, employment, price behavior, the trade balance or inflation.
From the analysis and observation of these macromagnitudes, Macroeconomics develops in two aspects: the positive aspect and the normative aspect.
The positive aspect consists of proposing models and theories that contribute to explaining in a descriptive way the development of economic processes such as the economic cycle or the growth of the economy. For its part, the normative aspect presents economic policy proposals aimed at improving the functioning of an economy. These policies can be considered from a non-interventionist perspective, which guarantees an economic framework in which markets can function freely, as well as from a more interventionist perspective in which the State develops policies to stabilize the functioning of the economy or redistribute wealth. .
José Luis Pérez Huertas, PhD in Economics and professor at EAE Business School
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