What do you believe is the single most important factor driving up the cost of living in Nigeria?

When it comes to the very basics of economics—production, trade and labor—average consumers and economists are on vastly different pages.

Consider public views on immigration, which often reflect fears that immigrants will steal jobs, or widespread pessimism about the health of the economy despite a raft of positive indicators. Another example is the widely held belief that "greedflation"—businesses exploiting increased demand by overcharging consumers—is the sole culprit behind increasing costs for food and other goods.

"Many problems result from our understanding of economics being shaped by our firsthand experiences, because we miss a lot of what determines market outcomes," Bhattacharjee said. "The core insights of economic science invoke invisible forces whose impact is deeply counterintuitive and difficult to grasp."

Take product pricing, for example: "Supply and demand and all the competitive pressures that bring a given product to a certain place at a certain price point—all of them are far removed in time and place from any transaction you take part in, and none are directly observable," he said.

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