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  • Understand types of economic systems and their historical development
  • Describe capitalism and socialism both in theory and in practice
  • Discussion how functionalists, conflict theorists, and symbolic interactionists view the economy and work
In figure (a), a photograph of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin is shown. In figure (b), a photograph of J.P. Morgan is shown.
Vladimir Ilyich Lenin was one of the founders of Russian communism. J.P. Morgan was one of the most influential capitalists in history. They have very different views on how economies should be run. (Photos (a) and (b) courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)

The dominant economic systems of the modern era have been capitalism and socialism, and there have been many variations of each system across the globe. Countries have switched systems as their rulers and economic fortunes have changed. For example, Russia has been transitioning to a market-based economy since the fall of communism in that region of the world. Vietnam, where the economy was devastated by the Vietnam War, restructured to a state-run economy in response, and more recently has been moving toward a socialist-style market economy. In the past, other economic systems reflected the societies that formed them. Many of these earlier systems lasted centuries. These changes in economies raise many questions for sociologists. What are these older economic systems? How did they develop? Why did they fade away? What are the similarities and differences between older economic systems and modern ones?

Economics of agricultural, industrial, and postindustrial societies

In figure (a) man in jeans and a denim shirt is shown kneeling and picking crops in a field. In figure (b), a man wearing a sports jacket and a hat is shown working on a computer.
In an agricultural economy, crops are the most important commodity. In a postindustrial society, the most valuable resource is information. (Photo (a) courtesy Wikimedia Commons; Photo (b) courtesy AntanaBhadraLamichhane/flickr)

Our earliest ancestors lived as hunter-gatherers. Small groups of extended families roamed from place to place looking for means to subsist. They would settle in an area for a brief time when there were abundant resources. They hunted animals for their meat and gathered wild fruits, vegetables, and cereals. They ate what they caught or gathered as soon as possible because they had no way of preserving or transporting it. Once the resources of an area ran low, the group had to move on, and everything they owned had to travel with them. Food reserves only consisted of what they could carry. Many sociologists contend that hunter-gatherers did not have a true economy because groups did not typically trade with other groups due to the scarcity of goods.

The agricultural revolution

The first true economies arrived when people started raising crops and domesticating animals. Although there is still a great deal of disagreement among archeologists as to the exact timeline, research indicates that agriculture began independently and at different times in several places around the world. The earliest agriculture was in the Fertile Crescent in the Middle East around 11,000–10,000 years ago. Next were the valleys of the Indus, Yangtze, and Yellow rivers in India and China, between 10,000 and 9,000 years ago. The people living in the highlands of New Guinea developed agriculture between 9,000 and 6,000 years ago, while people were farming in Sub-Saharan Africa between 5,000 and 4,000 years ago. Agriculture developed later in the western hemisphere, arising in what would become the eastern United States, central Mexico, and northern South America between 5,000 and 3,000 years ago (Diamond 2003).

Questions & Answers

if three forces F1.f2 .f3 act at a point on a Cartesian plane in the daigram .....so if the question says write down the x and y components ..... I really don't understand
Syamthanda Reply
hey , can you please explain oxidation reaction & redox ?
Boitumelo Reply
hey , can you please explain oxidation reaction and redox ?
Boitumelo
for grade 12 or grade 11?
Sibulele
the value of V1 and V2
Tumelo Reply
advantages of electrons in a circuit
Rethabile Reply
we're do you find electromagnetism past papers
Ntombifuthi
what a normal force
Tholulwazi Reply
it is the force or component of the force that the surface exert on an object incontact with it and which acts perpendicular to the surface
Sihle
what is physics?
Petrus Reply
what is the half reaction of Potassium and chlorine
Anna Reply
how to calculate coefficient of static friction
Lisa Reply
how to calculate static friction
Lisa
How to calculate a current
Tumelo
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Mogano
How to calculate force
Monambi
a structure of a thermocouple used to measure inner temperature
Anna Reply
a fixed gas of a mass is held at standard pressure temperature of 15 degrees Celsius .Calculate the temperature of the gas in Celsius if the pressure is changed to 2×10 to the power 4
Amahle Reply
How is energy being used in bonding?
Raymond Reply
what is acceleration
Syamthanda Reply
a rate of change in velocity of an object whith respect to time
Khuthadzo
how can we find the moment of torque of a circular object
Kidist
Acceleration is a rate of change in velocity.
Justice
t =r×f
Khuthadzo
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Precious Reply
hi
Shongi
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Leago
use fnet method. how many obects are being calculated ?
Khuthadzo
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Hulisani
how to calculate acceleration and tension force
Lungile Reply
you use Fnet equals ma , newtoms second law formula
Masego
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Mulaudzi Reply
how to calculate normal force
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Source:  OpenStax, Introduction to sociology. OpenStax CNX. Jun 12, 2012 Download for free at https://legacy.cnx.org/content/col11407/1.7
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