Why do economist look at group behavior rather than individual behavior?

Question

Why do economist look at group behavior rather than individual behavior?

Answer 1

It's easier to track group behavior in the economy than individual behavior.  The only school of economics I'm aware of that studies individual human behavior is the Austrian School of Economics founded by Carl Menger in 1871.  The websites below might be of interest to you:

http://www.mises.org/

http://hayekcenter.org/

http://www.hayekcenter.org/friedrichhaye...

Answer 2

Because in the end, it's the group behavior that matters.  If one person sells his car and buys his bike, that's great for him, but unless others do the same, he won't have any effect on the gas prices.  Economics studies how the economy works, and although the economy is composed of individuals, they tend to act in groups.

Answer 3

For the same reason that meteorologists look at groups of raindrops rather than individual rain drops.  With the exception of a small number of people, like Bill Gates and George Bush, the behavior of one individual makes very little economic impact on a country, or even a city or a chain of stores.  If I change my spending pattern, it makes no measurable impact at a national level.  If most people in my age and income group make the same change, it is noticed quickly.  Economists look at groups to identify and predict trends that will make an impact on a company, a state, or a country.

Answer 4

Economics is ill directed and ill defined material science. Had the definition been study of nature,composition, properties, laws and classification of wealth and had economists studied wealth the way chemists studied matter this question would not have been raised. Economists studied only application of wealth without knowing what is wealth. General laws of wealth like law of conservation and law of equilibrium, general properties of wealth like change from one form to another, movement of wealth from higher concentration to lower concentration were not studied at all. This pseudo social science status( though economics is a material science) led to all this.

Answer 5

Because they are interested in statistical data and trends that may apply to a bigger picture, and average out the behavior to predict better.

Answer 6

cuz there too lazy to look though the details and pick out the individual