Economics Essay

Economics is regarded as one of the earliest and arguably most essential of the social sciences. While not exactly a science as the term science is widely known as today, there are similarities that accommodate for its classification as a social science. One of these similarities lies in the roles that economists play as social advisors counterpart the role of scientists. As a policy advisor, an economist is expected to make reliable predictions and forecasts with regard to the policies to be instituted.Since the expectation is that of reliability, there is a large amount of precision required which is similar to that of the scientific manner employed by scientists. The use of the null and test hypothesis as a scientists has an application for policy advisors in coming up with these forecasts. No policy advisor can make any hypnotism without any empirical data or figures in the same way that no scientist will lay out a dissertation without any test.While these may make the rol es as policy advisors and scientists similar to a certain extent, there are also differences depending on the situation the economist is placed in. As a policy advisor, an economist is expected to present reliable information in order to aid in the formulation and implementation of policies, while these may have a certain amount of scientific evidence (so to speak), there is a certain reality check which takes place that demands that the economist take the most operable option.The most scientifically correct approach may not always be the most viable option and this is what an economist must deal with when taking on the role of a policy advisor as opposed to when an economist takes on the role of a scientist in policy making, which more ofttimes than not entails that only the facts be presented in a scholarly manner without particular attention to its viability to a lower place different constraints.