Command | Laissez-faire | |
An economy in which the government uses its coercive powers (such as command and control) to answer the three questions of allocation. It emphasises on public ownership. Follows the ideas of Karl Marx. | An economy, or economic system, that relies on both markets and governments to allocate resources. While, in theory, we could have a pure market economy or a pure command economy, in the real world all economies are mixed, relying on both markets and governments for allocation decisions. Follows the ideas of John Maynard Keynes, and John Stuart Mill. |
A french term that translates into "leave us alone." It's based on the belief that markets alone can achieve an efficient allocation of our resources. Follows the ideas of Adam Smith. Ownership |
Command | Mixed |
Market |
Everyone is taken care of, no one is left wanting for the basic necessities | People have the freedom to choose and make decisions |
Consumers influence goods and services produced |
No huge variation in prices, because they are controlled | The government controls the working conditions and product quality to ensure consumers are getting good products and workers have good working conditions |
Rewards provide incentive to improve |
The products that are sold are limited in variety | Businesses are limited in what they can do because of the restrictions placed on them by government |
Consumers may be manipulated by advertising |
The government controls every, or almost every aspect of people's lives | Higher taxes are necessary to pay for government expenses |
The economy is not steady resulting in periods of unemployment |