Metaeconomics

Every economy works in its own physical, human and technological environment. The physical environment relates to the geographical position, availability, fertility and other special characteristics of the land, and the types of minerals, etc. found in the area, as well as the difficulties associated with exploiting them. The human environment is dependent on the socio-political conditions, property relationships, and distribution of decision centres for different types of decisions; individuals with various skills, educational attainments, tastes, etc. form an important element of the human environment. The technological environment is the sum total of not only technical but also practical knowledge of how to do or accomplish the production of commodities with precision and efficiency. This is termed ‘know-how’, and its availability to the economy for production of different commodities, as well as the possibility of getting such know-how from external sources, constitutes the total technological environment in which the production processes in the economy have to work. In the case of external sources, the terms on which such know-how can be obtained become of vital importance; it also depends on the extent and the types of various assets the economy has accumulated.