Economics, as a social science, studies the production, distribution, and consumption of resources.

The word "economics" is from the Greek words οἶκος [oikos], meaning "family, household, estate," and νόμος [nomos], or "custom, law," and hence literally means "household management" or "management of the state." An economist is a person using economic concepts and data in the course of employment.

The field may be divided in several different ways, most popularly microeconomics vs macroeconomics. It may also be divided in positive (descriptive) vs. normative, mainstream vs. heterodox, and by subfield. Economics has many direct applications in business, personal finance, and government. Theories developed as a part of economic theory have also been applied to non-monetary choices in fields as diverse as criminal behavior, scientific research, death, politics, health, education, family, dating, etc. This is possible because economics is fundamentally about human decision making.