Unexpected and disruptive event that affects an economy, either positively or negatively
In economics, a shock is an unexpected or unpredictable event that affects an economy, either positively or negatively. Technically, it is an unpredictable change in exogenous factors—that is, factors unexplained by an economic model—which may influence endogenous economic variables.
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A preference shock is a change in preferences over consumption or leisure.
An inflationary shock happens when prices of commodities increase suddenly (e.g., after a decrease of government subsidies) while not all salaries are adjusted immediately throughout society (this results in a temporary loss of purchasing power for many consumers); or that production costs begin to exceed corporate revenues (e.g. following energy price hikes).
A news shock is a change in current expectations of future technological progress, which could be induced by new information about potential technological developments.
In the context of microeconomics, shocks are also studied at the household level, such as health, income, and consumption shocks. Negative individual and household economic shocks can result from job loss, for example, while positive shocks can come from winning the lottery.[2] For example, in development microeconomics the relationship between household income shocks and household levels of consumption is studied to understand a household's ability to insure itself (testing the full-insurance hypothesis).
Political impact
Economic shocks impact political preference. The experience of negative shocks such as job loss causes individuals to favor redistributive policies and broader social policies. Some evidence shows that negative economic shocks cause individuals to lose faith in political systems, though this erosion of trust is often temporary, rebounding over time. A narrow portion of voters may change their voting patterns in response to shock, which can include support for candidates and policies that are antiestablishment, populist, leftist, or ceasing to participate in the electoral process. Positive economic shocks are linked to an increase in trust in government institutions.[2]
This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Shock_(economics), and is written by contributors.
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