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78 Cards in this Set

  • Front
  • Back
inflation
an increase in the overall level of prices in the economy
market failure
a situation in which a market left on its own fails to allocate resources efficiently
Economics
the study of how society manages its scarce resources
incentive
something that induces a person to act
productivity
the quantity of goods and services produced from each unit of labor input
opportunity cost
whatever must be given up to obtain some item
externality
the impact of one person’s actions on the well-being of a bystander
Rational people
people who systematically and purposefully do the best they can to achieve their objectives
Scarcity
the limited nature of society’s resources
market economy
an economy that allocates resources through the decentralized decisions of many firms and households as they interact in markets for goods and services
business cycle
fluctuations in economic activity, such as employment and production
marginal change
a small incremental adjustment to a plan of action
Efficiency
the property of society getting the most it can from its scarce resources
market power
the ability of a single economic actor (or small group of actors) to have a substantial influence on market prices
Equality
the property of distributing economic prosperity uniformly among the members of society
property rights
the ability of an individual to own and exercise control over scarce resources
Positive statements
claims that attempt to describe the world as it is
circular-flow diagram
a visual model of the economy that shows how dollars flow through markets among households and firms
production possibilities frontier
a graph that shows the combinations of output that the economy can possibly produce given the available factors of production and the available production technology
Microeconomics
the study of how households and firms make decisions and how they interact in markets
Macroeconomics
the study of economy-wide phenomena, including inflation, unemployment, and economic growth
Normative statements
claims that attempt to prescribe how the world should be
opportunity cost
whatever must be given up to obtain some item
comparative advantage
the ability to produce a good at a lower opportunity cost than another producer
absolute advantage
the ability to produce a good using fewer inputs than another producer
imports
goods produced abroad and sold domestically
exports
goods produced domestically and sold abroad
law of supply
the claim that, other things being equal, the quantity supplied of a good rises when the price of the good rises
inferior good
a good for which, other things being equal, an increase in income leads to a decrease in demand
law of supply and demand
the claim that the price of any good adjusts to bring the quantity supplied and the quantity demanded for that good into balance
complements
two goods for which an increase in the price of one leads to a decrease in the demand for the other
demand schedule
a table that shows the relationship between the price of a good and the quantity demanded
market
a group of buyers and sellers of a particular good or service
substitutes
two goods for which an increase in the price of one leads to an increase in the demand for the other
law of demand
the claim that, other things being equal, the quantity demanded of a good falls when the price of the good rises
demand curve
a graph of the relationship between the price of a good and the quantity demanded
shortage
a situation in which quantity demanded is greater than quantity supplied
supply curve
a graph of the relationship between the price of a good and the quantity supplied
equilibrium price
the price that balances quantity supplied and quantity demanded
quantity demanded
the amount of a good that buyers are willing and able to purchase
surplus
a situation in which quantity supplied is greater than quantity demanded
quantity supplied
the amount of a good that sellers are willing and able to sell
normal good
a good for which, other things being equal, an increase in income leads to an increase in demand
equilibrium quantity
the quantity supplied and the quantity demanded at the equilibrium price
competitive market
a market in which there are many buyers and many sellers so that each has a negligible impact on the market price
supply schedule
a table that shows the relationship between the price of a good and the quantity supplied
equilibrium
a situation in which the market price has reached the level at which quantity supplied equals quantity demanded
price elasticity of supply
a measure of how much the quantity supplied of a good responds to a change in the price of that good, computed as the percentage change in quantity supplied divided by the percentage change in price
price elasticity of demand
a measure of how much the quantity demanded of a good responds to a change in the price of that good, computed as the percentage change in quantity demanded divided by the percentage change in price
total revenue
the amount paid by buyers and received by sellers of a good, computed as the price of the good times the quantity sold
income elasticity of demand
a measure of how much the quantity demanded of a good responds to a change in consumers’ income, computed as the percentage change in quantity demanded divided by the percentage change in income
elasticity
a measure of the responsiveness of quantity demanded or quantity supplied to a change in one of its determinants
cross-price elasticity of demand
a measure of how much the quantity demanded of one good responds to a change in the price of another good, computed as the percentage change in quantity demanded of the first good divided by the percentage change in price of the second good
price floor
a legal minimum on the price at which a good can be sold
tax incidence
the manner in which the burden of a tax is shared among participants in a market
price ceiling
a legal maximum on the price at which a good can be sold
willingness to pay
the maximum amount that a buyer will pay for a good
cost
the value of everything a seller must give up to produce a good
Producer surplus
the amount a seller is paid for a good minus the seller’s cost of providing it
welfare economics
the study of how the allocation of resources affects economic well-being
Consumer surplus
the amount a buyer is willing to pay for a good minus the amount the buyer actually pays for it
deadweight loss
the fall in total surplus that results from a market distortion, such as a tax
world price
the price of a good that prevails in the world market for that good
tariff
tax on goods produced abroad and sold domestically
transaction costs
the costs that parties incur in the process of agreeing to and following through on a bargain
corrective taxes
a tax designed to induce private decision makers to take account of the social costs that arise from a negative externality
Coase theorem
the proposition that if private parties can bargain without cost over the allocation of resources, they can solve the problem of externalities on their own
internalizing the externality
altering incentives so that people take account of the external effects of their actions
externality
the uncompensated impact of one person’s actions on the well-being of a bystander
Public goods
goods that are neither excludable nor rival in consumption
cost–benefit analysis
a study that compares the costs and benefits to society of providing a public good
Private goods
goods that are both excludable and rival in consumption
Tragedy of the Commons
a parable that illustrates why common resources are used more than is desirable from the standpoint of society as a whole
Club goods
goods that are excludable but not rival in consumption
Common resources
goods that are rival in consumption but not excludable
rivalry in consumption
the property of a good whereby one person’s use diminishes other people’s use
free rider
a person who receives the benefit of a good but avoids paying for it
excludable
the property of a good whereby a person can be prevented from using it