Several unique features have made Borjas' text the respected book that it has
become.
Approach: Labor economics is surveyed with an emphasis
on both theory and facts. This approach relies more on "the economic
way of thinking" than other texts.
Special pedagogical features include "Theory of Work"
boxes and extended policy applications throughout the text. E.g. Female Labor
Supply and Economic Development; Human Capital Externalities, "Key Concepts"
appear in boldface type in the text and are listed at chapter end as do Chapter
summaries, Review Questions and Problems, Selected Readings section, Weblinks
Section at the end of each chapter.
The book is much shorter than competing textbooks: Borjas
contains an introductory chapter, plus 12 substantive chapters. If the instructor
wished to cover all of the material, each chapter could serve as the basis
for about a week's worth of lectures in a typical undergraduate course.
Despite the book's brevity, the instructor will find that all of the
key topics in labor economics are covered. The discussion, however, is kept
to essentials. The author has not deviated into tangential material. Borjas
is geared towards those who prefer their labor economics "short and sweet."
Motivating examples: The text includes a number of policy-relevant
examples, including a discussion of the link between labor supply and the
Earned Income Tax Credit (Chapter 2), a discussion of how taxes and subsidies
affect labor demand (Chapter 5); and a discussion the intergenerational correlation
in earnings (Chapter 8). Students are better able to understand the links
between theory and reality.
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2005 McGraw-Hill Higher Education