PrintSummary
In this lesson, you learned what markets are and how they form significant aspects of the economy. The specific forms of market structure and market order are prerequisites for market coordination. Forms of economic coordination (network, hierarchy, and market) are useful in reducing the complexity of the economy. Markets are fundamentally social in their foundation and are also a major aspect of social life. Markets have specific elements, take specific forms, and are limited in specific ways.
As you will learn throughout the course, a significant and persistent fact about markets is that they are interconnected complex systems. This means that, while markets have order, they also have uncertainty -- mainly due to the various, and sometimes unforeseen, connections to other systems (such as the energy market system being influenced by local weather conditions).
Reminder - Complete all of the Lesson 1 tasks!
You have reached the end of Lesson 1! Double-check the to-do list on the Lesson 1 Overview page to make sure you have completed all of the activities listed there before you begin Lesson 2.