The first thing is defining economic prosperity and how it relates to the world in which we live. Economics is the study of what constitutes rational human behavior in the endeavor to fulfill needs and wants (http://www.investopedia.com/university/economics/). Prosperity is an economic state of growth with rising profits and full employment. Simply put, individuals choose how they will best utilize resources based upon increase or decline in profit or as it relates to scarcity. Scarcity is "the fundamental concept of economics that indicates that there is less of a good freely available from nature than people would like" (Economics Private & Public Choice, 11th edition, page 6). The textbook speaks of "The Economic Way of Thinking", and this way of thinking is all about how incentives alter the choices people make (page 3). Human ingenuity demonstrates economic prosperity.
Human Ingenuity, the first key, states that economic goods are the result of human ingenuity and action; thus, the size of the economic pie" is variable, not fixed. The creation of wealth occurs in a society when participants contribute to the economy. Each individual is unique and can offer goods and services that will not only benefit that individual, but also contribute to the greater good of society. The text points out very clearly that in a market economy, a larger income for one person does not mean a smaller income for another" (page 48). The earning potential created by this
References: Copyright © 1999-2006 - All rights reserved. Owned and Operated by Investopedia Inc. Copyright © 2006, Lexico Publishing Group, LLC. All rights reserved. Dictionary.com. Gwartney, James D., Macpherson, David A., Sobel, Russell S., Stroup, Richard L., (2006). Economics: Private & Public Choice, 11th Edition, Thomson, South-Western. Hellriegel, Jackson. (2005). Entrepreneurship. In Management A Competency-Based Approach (10th ed., p. 126). Beauceville-Quebec, Canada: South-Western, a division of Thomson Learning.