Title: Is market power destructive? An undergraduate assignment using Adam Smith's criticisms of monopolies

Authors: Sara Bothun

Addresses: Valparaiso University, 1400 Chapel Drive, Valparaiso, Indiana 46383, USA

Abstract: This paper describes an assignment where students evaluate a current industry using Adam Smith's arguments against monopoly power. Using Smith's arguments, students write a paper describing whether they believe a current industry, such as the US cellular phone carrier industry, suffers from the problems Smith described in The Wealth of Nations. This assignment invites students to take ownership over a current issue while developing a deep understanding of monopolies. By using Smith's criticisms of monopolies, students will also see that economic 'truths' are complicated, even in the classic 'laissez-faire' text.

Keywords: teaching methods; pedagogy; undergraduate economics; Adam Smith; monopolies; economics education; monopoly power; monopolies; USA; United States.

DOI: 10.1504/IJPEE.2012.052678

International Journal of Pluralism and Economics Education, 2012 Vol.3 No.4, pp.415 - 423

Received: 13 Sep 2012
Accepted: 21 Nov 2012
Published online: 16 Aug 2014 *

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