Chapter 1 What Is Economics?
1.1 Definition of Economics
1) In a world characterized by scarcity
A) all goods are free.
B) opportunity cost is zero.
C) we are not limited by time.
D) individuals need not work to obtain goods.
E) people must make choices among alternatives.
Answer: E
Diff: 1 Type: MC
Topic: Definition of Economics
2) Which of the following is the best definition of economics?
A) the study of how a provincial government allocates tax dollars
B) the study of how consumers spend their income
C) the study of how producers decide what inputs to hire and what outputs to produce
D) the study of how individuals, businesses, governments, and entire societies make choices as
they cope with scarcity and the incentives that influence and reconcile those choices
E) the study of how consumers and producers meet each other in the market
Answer: D
Diff: 1 Type: MC
Topic: Definition of Economics
3) Which of the following is a microeconomic topic?
A) the reasons why a consumer buys less honey
B) the reasons why the average price level in a country falls
C) the cause of increasing unemployment
D) the effect of the government budget deficit on inflation
E) the reasons why the labour force in a country decreases
Answer: A
Diff: 1 Type: MC
Topic: Definition of Economics
4) The study of how wages are set for New Brunswick teachers is classified as
A) a macroeconomic topic.
B) a microeconomic topic.
C) economics of social interest.
D) economics of private interest.
E) normative economics.
Answer: B
Diff: 1 Type: MC
Topic: Definition of Economics
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, 5) Which of the following newspaper headlines concerns a macroeconomic issue?
A) Why are people buying more SUVs and fewer minivans?
B) How would a tax on e-commerce affect chapters.indigo.ca?
C) How would an unexpected freeze in Oxford, Nova Scotia change the price of blueberries in
the Maritimes?
D) Why is the U.S. economy experiencing slow growth?
E) Why do grain producers purchase less pesticides?
Answer: D
Diff: 1 Type: MC
Topic: Definition of Economics
6) The branch of economics that studies the choices of individuals and businesses is
A) macroeconomics.
B) microeconomics.
C) positive economics.
D) normative economics.
E) social economics.
Answer: B
Diff: 1 Type: MC
Topic: Definition of Economics
7) Each of the following would be considered a macroeconomic topic except
A) the reasons for a decrease in the unemployment rate.
B) the cause of recessions.
C) the effect of the government budget deficit on inflation.
D) the determination of aggregate income.
E) the selection of production techniques.
Answer: E
Diff: 2 Type: MC
Topic: Definition of Economics
8) Complete the following sentence. Macroeconomics
A) is primarily concerned with the operation of individual markets in the economy.
B) deals mainly with the economic behaviour of households.
C) is the only part of economics to deal with government decisions.
D) is primarily concerned with the behaviour of the stock market.
E) is the study of the performance of the national economy and the global economy.
Answer: E
Diff: 2 Type: MC
Topic: Definition of Economics
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