When society overallocated resources to the production of a product it means that the ________....
Question:
When society overallocated resources to the production of a product it means that the _____.
(a) investment in the product is declining
(b) opportunity cost of the product is decreasing
(c) marginal benefit is greater than the marginal cost
(d) marginal benefit is less than the marginal cost.
Overallocation of Resources:
Since resources in an economy are scarce, an economic system that can currently allocate these scarce resources is needed. In a perfect world, all markets should be able to deliver allocative efficiency.
Answer and Explanation: 1
Become a Study.com member to unlock this answer! Create your account
View this answerThe correct option is (d) marginal benefit is less than the marginal cost.
An overallocation of resources to the production of a product means that...
See full answer below.
Ask a question
Our experts can answer your tough homework and study questions.
Ask a question Ask a questionSearch Answers
Learn more about this topic:

from
Chapter 3 / Lesson 20Understand what allocative efficiency is and when it occurs. Learn the definition and formula for allocative efficiency, and see examples of allocative efficiency.
Related to this Question
- A society that is producing its maximum combination of goods and using all available resources for production a. has minimized its opportunity cost. b. has maximized its opportunity cost. c. is operating on its production possibilities frontier (PPF). d.
- 1. An overallocation of resources in an industry means that for the last unit produced, a. the marginal cost of production is falling. b. society places a higher value on the resources required to pro
- If the marginal benefit received from a good is greater than the marginal cost of production, then: A) society's well-being can be improved if production increases. B) society's well-being can be improved if production decreases. C) society's well-bein
- If the marginal benefit received from a good is less than the marginal cost of production, then: A) society's well-being can be improved if production increases. B) society's well-being can be improved if production decreases. C) society's well-being c
- If the marginal benefit received from a good is less than the marginal cost of production, then: a) society's well-being can be improved if production increases. b) society's well-being can be improved if production decreases. c) society's well-being cann
- The marginal physical product of labor declines as long as there is any opportunity cost associated with the production of the good.
- If an economy is being "productively efficient," then that means the economy is A. producing the products most wanted by society. B. fully employing all economic resources. C. maximizing the returns to factors of production. D. using the least costly prod
- Allocative inefficiency means: a. goods aren't going to the consumers who value them the most. b. goods aren't being allocated at low cost. c. firms aren't producing all goods that consumers value more than the cost of production. d. firms could produce a
- Suppose that capital costs $10 per unit and labour costs $4 per unit. If the marginal product of capital is 50 and the marginal product of labour is 50, then in the long run the firm should in order to minimize its costs of producing its output. A) emplo
- If the marginal benefit received from a good is equal to the marginal cost of production, then: a) society's well-being cannot be improved by changing production. b) society's well-being can be improved if production decreases. c) society's well-being can
- If the marginal benefit received from a good is equal to the marginal cost of production, then: A) society's well-being cannot be improved by changing production. B) society's well-being can be improved if production decreases. C) society's well-being
- A company has the following cost function: C(q) = 4q3 - 200q2 + 500q + 50,000. a. What level of output will minimize the average variable cost? b. Does the production process indicate diminishing marginal product? How can you tell?
- A firm produces output with capital and labor. Suppose currently the marginal product of labor is 21 and the marginal product of capital is 6. Each unit of labor costs $12 and each unit of capital co
- If a market is being "productively efficient," then that means the market is: a. Producing the products most wanted by society, b. Fully employing all economic resources, c. Maximizing the returns to factors of production, d. Using the least costly produc
- A firm has the production function f(x, y) = x^1.40y^1. This firm has: a. decreasing returns to scale and diminishing marginal products for factor x. b. increasing returns to scale and decreasing marginal product of factor x. c. decreasing returns to scal
- Economic profit equals total revenue minus: a) the cost of resources bought in the market. b) the implicit rental rate. c) the cost of resources owned by the firm. d) the cost of resources supplied by the owner. e) the opportunity cost of production.
- Because of diminishing returns, a factor of production in scarce supply has a: a. low marginal product and a low rental price. b. low marginal product and a high rental price. c. high marginal product and a high rental price. d. high marginal product and
- When a firm produces a level of output on the production function: a. Marginal physical product is zero b. Maximum efficiency is achieved c. Opportunity cost for resources is at a maximum d. Profits are maximized
- 1. Opportunity cost is: a.The variable cost a firm incurs by increasing output one unit. b.The value of the best alternative use of a firm's resources. c.The output opportunities a firm gains when
- If a factor of production presents a diminishing marginal product, this means: (a) as we increase the amount of all inputs, the marginal product of any one input eventually begins to decrease. (b) as we increase the amount of input, while keeping all othe
- Given that the production function relating output to capital becomes flatter moving from the left to the right means that: A) The marginal product of capital is positive. B) There is diminishing marginal productivity of labor. C) There is diminishing mar
- If the marginal product of an input is positive, but decreasing as more and more of the input is employed, then: a) the firm must be operating in the long run. b) average product must be declining. c) the firm should produce less output. d) total product
- A firm is producing 50 units of output and receiving $1.50 for each unit. At this output, marginal revenue is $l.25, average cost per unit is $l.20, and marginal cost is $l.40. From these revenue and
- A society that is producing its maximum combination of goods and using all available resources for production a. is operating outside its PPF. b. has eliminated scarcity. c. is operating on its production possibilities frontier (PPF). d. has maximized
- If the marginal product of labor is 3, the marginal product of capital is 4, the wage rate is $4.50, the rental price of capital is $6, and the price of output is $1.50, then the firm should: A. increase output by hiring more labor, more capital, or both
- If the marginal product of labor is 2, the marginal product of capital is 4, the wage rate is $3, the rental price of capital is $6, and the price of output is $1.50, then the firm should: a. increase output by hiring more labor, more capital, or both. b.
- Your firm must produce a specified output level. The firm uses capital and labor as inputs. If the price of capital is $40, the price of labor is $100, the marginal product of capital is 20, and the marginal product of labor is 40, then: - the firm is mi
- The production possibilities curve shows the: A. various combinations of two goods that can be produced when society employs all its scarce resources. B. minimum outputs of two goods that will susta
- Ceteris paribus, if a society is producing at a point on the production possibilities frontier (PPF), it can only increase the production of one good by a. also increasing the production of the second good. b. decreasing the production of the second good.
- The production function for a firm is given by q = L^{.75} K^{.25} where q denotes output; Land K labor and capital inputs. (a) Determine marginal product of labor. Show whether or not the above production function exhibits diminishing marginal produ
- If all If all resources used in the production of a product are increased by 10% and output increases by less than 5%, then the firm is experiencing: A. economies of scale. B. diseconomies of scale. C. constant returns to scale. D. decreasing average tot
- The marginal revenue product is: a. an increase in the profit of a firm with an increase in the output by one unit. b. the value that all the unskilled workers contribute to a firm. c. the value th
- The marginal revenue product is: a) the value of all the final goods and services produced by a firm. b) the value that a worker contributes to a firm. c) an increase in the profit of a firm with an increase in the output by one unit. d) the output pe
- For a certain firm, the 100th unit of output that the firm produces has a marginal revenue of $7 and a marginal cost of $10. It follows that the: a. Production of the 100th unit of output increases the firm's profit by $3, b. Production of the 100th unit
- Hiring a unit of labour costs $10 while hiring a unit of capital costs $20. The marginal product of capital is equal to 200. A cost-minimizing manager will hire labour until its marginal product falls to: a) 50 b) 100 c) 200 d) 400
- In the short run, when a firm is producing quantities that are greater than the quantity which minimizes short-run average costs, the marginal product of labor (MPL) A. will be rising the more the firm is producing. B. will be falling the more the firm is
- Diminishing returns to capital implies that what diminishes as more capital is added? a. output b. the marginal product of capital c. the cost of producing goods and services d. technological knowledg
- Suppose the marginal product of labor is 12 and the marginal product of capital is 24. If the wage rate is $4 and the price of capital is $6, then in order to minimize costs, the firm should use: a. more labor and less capital. b. more capital and less la
- The opportunity cost of producing capital is _______. (a) decreased current production of consumption goods (b) increased future production of consumption goods (c) the amount of roundabout production (d) abundant capital accumulation (e) the decreased am
- When a society achieves allocative efficiency, it: a) is not achieving production efficiency. b) is producing a combination of goods and services whose marginal cost exceeds their marginal benefit. c) is producing that combination of goods and services th
- Assume that a purely competitive firm uses two resources, labor (L)and capital (C), to produce a product. The market price of this product is $1.00. The Marginal Product (MP) and prices of the resourc
- Suppose the marginal product of labor is 10 and the marginal product of capital is 8. If the wage rate is $5 and the price of capital is $2, then in order to minimize costs the firm should use: A. more capital and less labor. B. more labor and less capita
- Allocative efficiency is concerned with: a. producing the combination of goods most desired by society. b. achieving the full employment of all available resources. c. producing every good with the least-cost combination of inputs. d. reducing the co
- Diminishing marginal returns means that as you combine more units of a variable resource with a set of fixed resources: a. the marginal physical product of the variable input decreases. b. the avera
- The amount of pollution and pollution abatement is optimal when: a. marginal social benefit of production exceeds the marginal social cost of production. b. marginal social benefit of production is less than the marginal social cost of production. c. marg
- For a certain firm, the 100th unit of output that the firm produces has a revenue of $7 and a marginal cost of $10. It follows that the a. Production of the 100th unit of output increases the firms profit but $3, b. Production of the 100th unit of output
- A firm that maximizes profits also: a. pays input prices lower than other firms do. b. cuts corners in production processes so that its products are made too cheaply. c. is inefficient. d. uses the least-cost combination of resources.
- Increasing opportunity costs of producing goods imply that the production possibilities curve will be: a. downward sloping. b. upward sloping. c. bowed inward. d. bowed outward.
- The law of diminishing marginal returns states: A) As the size of a firm's plant increases, the average cost eventually decreases. B) As a firm uses more of a variable factor of production, with a given quantity of the fixed factor of production, the ma
- When the marginal product of an input declines as the quantity of the input increases, the production function exhibits: a) increasing marginal product. b) diminishing marginal product. c) diminishing total product. d) Both b and c are correct.
- Diminishing marginal returns means that, as you combine more units of a variable resource with a set of fixed resources, a. the marginal physical product of the variable input decreases. b. the average physical product of the fixed inputs increases at a
- Attaining "allocative efficiency" means that A. the law of increasing opportunity costs has reached a maximum. B. the least costly methods are being used to produce a product. C. resources are being devoted to the production of products most desired by so
- Attaining "allocative efficiency" means that: a. The law of increasing opportunity costs has reached a maximum, b. The least costly methods are being used to produce a product, c. Resources are being devoted to the production of products most desired by s
- Allocative efficiency is concerned with : (a) achieving the full employment of all available resources. (b) producing every good with the least-cost combination of inputs. (c) producing the combination of goods most desired by society. (d) reducing
- If a firm is producing so that the point chosen along the production possibility frontier is socially preferred, then that firm is said to have reached its: a) minimum price efficiency. b) utility-maximizing efficiency. c) allocative efficiency. d) produc
- In the study of economics, investment means a. the accumulation of capital that is used to produce goods and services. b. owning stocks and bonds. c. the principle that the opportunity cost increases as the production of one output expands. d. the eff
- The slope of the PPF can also be expressed as: a) The ratio of abundance of labor to capital, b) The ratio of the marginal products of labor to the marginal product of capital, c) Consumer utility, d) The opportunity cost of the good measured on the ve
- Diminishing marginal returns means that: a. as more capital is used in production, but the labour input is held constant, MPK falls. b. as labour increases and capital decreases for a given level of output, the marginal product of labour divided by the
- A negative externality exists whenever: a) production of a good creates an external cost. b) there are no internal costs. c) production of a good creates an external benefit. d) production of a good has no social benefit. e) production of a good has no s
- A firm is producing 100 units of its product. At this level of output the AVC=$60, and the ATC=$80. The firm is a price taker and the price for its product is $100. Assuming that the firm is maximizing profits and that labor is the only variable input. Fr
- Increasing opportunity cost implies that: A. the society will be producing inside its production possibilities frontier. B. producing additional units of one good results in increasing amounts of lost output of the other good. C. producing additional unit
- When the quantity of capital in an economy increases?, Blank. A. the opportunity cost of most goods falls to zero. B. economic growth occurs, but it is not free. C. the opportunity cost of producing every good decreases. D. the production possibilities fr
- Suppose a firm's production function is given by Q= L^1/2 * K^1/2.The marginal product of labor and the marginal product of capital is given by: MPL= K^1/2 /2L^1/2 and MPk= L^1/2/2K^ 1/2. Suppose the price of labor is w = 24 and the price of capital is r
- When an increase in the range of goods produced brings a decrease in the average total cost of production, the firm is experiencing A. diminishing returns. B. economies of scale. C. economies of scope. D. diseconomies of scale.
- Specialization and trade are beneficial to society because: a) the output of economic goods may be increased with no increase in resources. b) scarce resources are utilized more efficiently. c) a division of labour lowers prices for products. d) all of th
- Whenever productive resources are used to make capital goods: A. absolute advantage occurs. B. society is giving up current consumption. C. the production possibilities curve becomes flatter. D. society is not producing efficiently.
- Is there an opportunity cost to increased investment in capital goods today? a. Yes, increased production of capital goods means fewer consumer goods today. b. Yes, increased production of capital goods today means less economic growth in the future. c. N
- As an economy produces more of one of the goods on a bowed out production possibilities frontier, what happens to the opportunity cost of producing the good? a. It decreases. b. It might increase, decrease, or remain constant depending on how much people
- The producer that can produce a product with a lower opportunity cost: (x) has a comparative advantage in the production of that good. (y) may not have an absolute advantage in the production of that good. (z) should specialize in the production of that p
- If the marginal product per dollar spent on capital is more than the marginal product per dollar spent on labor, then to minimize costs, the firm should use? a) less capital and more labor. b) less labor and more capital. c) less labor and less capital. d
- A negative value for the marginal physical product would indicate that: a. the company has not yet reached the point of saturation. b. total output increased by a significant amount. c. total output decreased when the extra unit of the variable input w
- If a firm is producing where MR > MC ____? A. the revenue gained by producing one more unit of output exceeds the cost incurred by doing so. B. the revenue gained by producing one more unit of output equals the costs incurred by doing so. C. the rev
- One interpretation of producer surplus is that it equals: a. The profits of a firm, b. Consumer surplus, c. The return to the fixed factors of production in an industry, d. The difference between the price of a product and its average cost of producti
- The profit-maximizing rule states that a perfectly competitive firm: (a) should not produce a unit if its MC less than MR (b) should produce that level of output at which MR = MC (c) produces too much if MR = MC (d) should stop production as soon as it ex
- In the short run, an unexpected increase in prices will - reduce resource prices and increase the quantity of goods supplied. - decrease the productive capacity of firms and decrease the quantity of goods supplied. - increase the profits of firms, ther
- If a firm wants to maximize its profits, it should: a. equate the marginal revenue product for each input to the price of the input. b. hire unskilled labor rather than skilled labor since unskilled labor is cheaper. c. hire lots of capital and very lit
- a. If the input price decreases from $2.00 to $1.50, what is the new per unit cost of production? b. Suppose that instead of the input price decreasing, the productivity had increased by 25%. What will be the new unit cost of production?
- A firm's production process uses labor, L, and capital, K, and materials, M, to produce an output, Q according to the function Q= KLM, where the marginal products of the three inputs are MP_L= KM, MP_K = LM, and MP_M= KL. The wage rate for labor is w = 2
- A firm has production function f(L,K)=2L+4K. Then, if the firm substitutes 2 units of labor WITH one unit of capital? a. Production increases b. The Marginal product of labor decreases c. The Marg
- Marginal cost can be defined as the change in: A. cost resulting from one more unit of production. B. cost resulting from one less unit of production. C. benefit resulting from one more unit of production. D. benefit resulting from one less unit of produc
- A firm is currently producing 200 units of output using 60 hours of labor and 80 hours of capital. The marginal product of labor is 12 units of output per hour, and the marginal product of capital is 15 units of output per hour. If the wage rate is $6 per
- If property rights for a product are poorly defined or enforced, then: a. underconsumption will occur, and producers will be unsatisfied with the lack of profitability. b. overconsumption will occur, and few firms will find it beneficial to produce the pr
- The company you work for hires labor and capital in competitive factor markets. Currently the wage rate is $10 per hour and capital is rented at $21 per hour. If the marginal product of labor is 30 units of output per hour and the marginal product of capi
- Society must pay the full opportunity cost of any activity: a. that uses scarce resources. b. that causes costs to rise. c. that increases revenues. d. none of these
- The marginal product of labor is 10 and the marginal product of capital is 20. If the wage rate is $10 and the price of capital is $5, is the firm using the right balance of capital and labor? Explain
- The bowed-out (concave) shape of a production possibilities frontier: a) is due to technological change. b) is due to capital accumulation. c) reflects the existence of decreasing opportunity cost. d) is due to the equal usefulness of resources in all act
- The production function for a product is given by q = K1/2L1/4 where K is capital, L is labor and q is output. a. Find the marginal products of labor and capital. b. Is the marginal product of labor increasing or decreasing with labor? Is the marginal p
- A person who has an absolute advantage in the production of all goods will: a) not have a comparative advantage in the production of any goods. b) produce all goods at the lowest opportunity cost. c) have a comparative advantage in the production of only
- A production possibilities frontier will be bowed out if: a) There is scarcity, b) Technology is improving, c) Production of one good involves an opportunity cost, d) Resources are not perfectly adaptable to making each good, e) Resources are used efficie
- The law of diminishing marginal productivity states: a. that in the presence of a fixed factor, at some point average product of labor starts to fall as more and more variable inputs are added. b. that average total costs of production initially fall and
- The law of diminishing marginal returns (a) does not hold when the marginal product is always positive (b) has to hold when an additional unit of capital produces more extra output than an additional unit of labor (c) has to hold when increasing capital
- A market economy over-allocates resources to the production of goods which involve. (a) spillover costs (b) spillover benefits
- The law of diminishing returns assumes: a) There are no fixed factors of production. b) There are no variable factors of production. c) Utility is maximized when marginal product falls. d) Some factors of production are fixed.
- Allocative efficiency: a. means that no inferior products will be produced. b. implies that the economy's output is distributed evenly. c. means that those who work hardest will get more. d. implies that resources are used to produce the goods and service
- For the production function q= K^0.2 L^0.3 use a lagrangian to solve for the cost minimizing input bundle to produce 100 units of output if v=10 and w=15. What is the marginal cost of production at th
- For a production function with a diminishing, but positive, marginal product of labor: a. Output increases at an increasing rate as more workers are employed. b. Output increases at a decreasing rate as more workers are employed. c. Output declines as
- Economic profits equal: A. accounting profits. B. accounting profits plus the owner's labor opportunity costs. C. accounting profits less economic rents. D. total revenue less the opportunity costs of all factors of production.
- If opportunity costs are increasing, then the production possibilities frontier: A) will be linear and have a negative slope. B) will be positively sloped. C) will be bowed out and have a negative slope. D) reflects the fact that available resources a