Handbook on Contemporary Austrian Economics

The Austrian school of economics was founded in 1871 with the publication of Carl Menger's Principles of Economics. In his book, Menger argued that economic analysis is universally applicable and that the appropriate unit of analysis is man and his choices. These choices, he wrote, are determined by individual subjective preferences and the margin on which decisions are made. The logic of choice, he believed, is the essential building block to the development of a universally valid economic theory.