Product Description

This is a standard text for upper level undergraduate/postgraduate microeconomics.

The book begins at the intermediate level and ends at a level appropriate for the graduate student. Updated and revised, this is a new edition of one of the best-selling advanced microeconomics texts to be published in Europe. This well informed book provides a comprehensive exposition of modern microeconomic theory, covering many of the issues currently being researched and debated. The book offers very rigorous, mathematical treatment of the topics discussed making it appropriate for graduate as well as able intermediate level students. The writing style is clear and concise and the book is particularly liked for the thoroughness with which the concepts are dealt.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #100009 in Books
• Published on: 2004-06-17
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 738 pages

From the Back Cover

"Comprehensive, well informed and a joy to read. It was hard to put the book down once I had started to read it. In terms of the coverage, it will be hard to find a matching text"

This highly regarded text is one of the best-selling advanced microeconomics books to be published in Europe. Updated and revised, the new edition provides a comprehensive exposition of modern microeconomic theory, covering many of the issues currently being researched and debated.

As in previous editions, the third edition offers rigorous treatment of the topics discussed, with the major emphasis placed on giving the student an intuitive understanding of microeconomic models and theories. This book provides the student with a good understanding of the nature and purpose of microeconomic theories and the way the theories interrelate to form a coherent whole. Students are encouraged, with the use of the exercises which are integral to the book, to develop the ability to apply microeconomic theories in solving problems.

• New!
• Chapter on game theory.

• New! Chapters on uncertainty and asymmetric information have been extended and restructured.
• Microeconomic concepts are dealt with rigorously, comprehensively and in depth.
• Numerous exercises throughout form an integral part of the book.

• The writing style is clear and concise.
• Discussions of literature and suggestions for further reading are in an extensive set of notes at the end of the book.
• Mathematics of optimization is included in a number of short appendices at the end of the book.

Beginning at the intermediate level and ending at a level appropriate for the graduate student, this is a core text for upper level undergraduate and taught graduate microeconomics courses.

Hugh Gravelle is Professor at the National Primary Care Research and Development Center, University of York.

Ray Rees is Professor of Economics, at Ludwig Maximillans University, Germany.

About the Author
Preface1 The nature and scope of microeconomicsA Concepts and methodsB The economic and social framework2 The theory of the consumerA The preference orderingB The feasible setC The consumption decisionD The comparative statics of consumer behaviourE Offer curves and net demand curvesAppendix 1 : The lexicographic orderingAppendix 2 : Existence of a utility function 3 Consumer theory : dualityA The expenditure functionB The indirect utility function, Roy's identity and the Slutsky equationC Measuring the benefits of price changesD Composite commodities, separability and homotheticity 4 Further models of consumer behaviourA Revealed preferenceB The consumer as a labour supplierC Consumption and the allocation of timeD Households5 ProductionA IntroductionB The production functionB Variations in scaleC Variations in input proportionsD The multi-product case6 CostA IntroductionB Long-run cost minimizationC Short-run cost minimizationD Cost minimization with several plantsE Multi-product cost functions7 Supply and firm objectivesA Long-run profit maximizationB Short-run profit maximizationC The multi-product firmD The profit function and comparative staticsE The entrepreneurial firmF Labour managed firms8 The theory of a competitive marketA Short-run equilibriumB Stability of equilibriumC Long-run equilibrium9 MonopolyA IntroductionB Price and output determination under monopolyC Price discriminationD Monopoly welfare loss10 Input markets A Demand for inputsB MonopsonyC Unions as monopoly input suppliersD Bilateral monopoly11 Capital marketsA IntroductionB Optimal consumption over timeC The optimal investment decisionD Capital market equilibrium under certaintyE Extensions to many periods 12 General equilibrium A IntroductionB Walrasian equilibrium of a competitive economyC Existence of Walrasian equilibriumD Stability of Walrasian equilibriumE Edgeworth exchange theoryF Exchange, equilibrium and the core13 Welfare economics A IntroductionB Pareto efficient resource allocationC Welfare functions and the Pareto criterionD Pareto efficiency and competitive marketsE Distribution and marketsF Arrow's impossibility theorem14 Market failure and government failureA The causes of market failureB Instances of market failureC Theory of the second best D Government failure 15 Game theory A IntroductionB Game representation and solutions C Imperfect and incomplete informationD Mixed strategies E Cooperative bargainingF Non-cooperative bargainingG Delay and disagreement in bargaining16 Oligopoly 17 Choice under uncertaintyA IntroductionB A formalization of 'uncertainty'C Choice under uncertaintyD Properties of the utility functionE Risk aversion and indifference curvesF Measures of risk G Comparative statics under uncertainty 18 Production under uncertaintyA IntroductionB Competitive firm under uncertaintyC Production with futures markets19 Insurance, risk spreading and risk poolingA Introduction B The insurance decisionC Incomplete insurance marketsD Risk spreading: the Arrow-Lind TheoremE Risk poolingF Asymmetric information in insurance markets : adverse selectionG Asymmetric information in insurance markets : moral hazard20 Agency and contract theory 21 General equilibrium under uncertainty and incomplete marketsA Introduction B Complete markets in state contingent claimsC State contingent commoditiesD Efficiency with productionE The stock marketF Incomplete stock marketsFurther readingMathematical AppendicesA Structure of optimisation problemsB Solutions: questions and conceptsC Existence of solutionsD Local and global optimaE Uniqueness of solutionsF Interior and boundary optimaG Location of the optimum: method of LagrangeH Concave programming and the KuhnTucker conditionsI Second order conditions and comparative staticsJ The envelope theoremK Fixed point theoremsL Bayes ruleIndex

Customer Reviews

Comments above are too harsh
Whilst I agree to an extent that the content is quite mathematical, it seems to be aimed at third year economics students and to be fair most will have covered enough of the mathematics used here. Although it does cover a large number of topics, I found the depth reasonable, and the recommended reading/references given where generally very useful. I think that many modern micro courses are outlining some of the more interesting theories in advanced micro rather than normal textbook micro at a higher level. This book, in my opinion, manages a reasonable attempt to join the two styles. And its chapters on expected utility and moral hazard are very strong.

A Superb revision
Since the last edition, this Microeconomics textbook from Gravelle & Rees has undergone a tremendous facelift that the contents inside feature an addition to the last one.

This text is good for intermediated to advanced study with all the clear explanation of the concepts and nice accompanying illustrations. The appendices provide many important topics like optimisation and so on, which deepen the reader's understanding while not being in the chapters makes the book smoothly flowing and easy to read.

Underrated
I think this is an extremely well written and wide ranging book that does not deserve such a low star rating. Econ textbooks are horses for courses and preference depends on your level, interests and taste. The review which said that better books are available would have been more helpful if the reviewer had identified them. One gripe would be that we are given the analytical tools in some detail before being told quite what we're trying to achieve with them, but I think that's true of almost every economic textbook. Also, in the edition I have, there are no solutions to the questions. Apparently those are in another book which I'm now trying to find.