What are economic resources? What categories do economists use to classify them? Why are resources also called factors of production? Why are they called inputs? t are economic resources? What categories do economists use to classify them? Why are resources also called factors of production? Why are they called inputs?

Short Answer

Expert verified

All the resources that are used in the production of goods and services are economic resources.

Economic resources are categorized into four parts.

  • Land
  • Laboratory
  • Capital
  • Entrepreneurship skills

Resources are also called factors of production because they are used as inputs in the production process of goods and services.

Resources are called inputs because they are utilized in the initial phase of the production.

Step by step solution

01

Meaning of economic resources

Any resource that is available to society and can be used in the production of goods and services is an economic resource. It can be naturally available or manufactured by humans. Thus, resources that are used in economic activities to produce goods and services are called economic resources.

02

Categorization of economic resources 

The economic resources can be categorized as follows.

  • Country: It includes all the natural resources, such as a piece of land, forests, minerals, water bodies, etc.
  • Labor: It includes the physical and mental activities of humans in the production process.
  • Capital: It includes the resources that aid in the production process, such as factories, transportation, warehouses, and others.
  • Entrepreneurship ability: It is referred to as the skills of those who invest in other resources used in the production process. It also includes the wit and mindset of a person who tends to carry out different activities.
03

Economic resources are also called factors of production 

The factors of production are the components that are responsible for carrying out the production of goods and services. Thus, in other words, the factors of production are the inputs that are utilized during the production process. As economic resources are used as inputs in the production of goods and services, they are also called factors of production.

04

Economic resources are also called inputs

Any item of service that is utilized at the initial process for the production of a good or service is called an input. As economic resources are used in the initial phase of the production process, they are also called inputs.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

Make (a) a positive economic statement of your choice and then (b) a normative economic statement relating to your first statement.

Match each term with the correct definition.

• Economics

• Opportunity cost

• Marginal analysis

• Utility

e. The next-best thing that must be forgone in order to produce one more unit of a given product

f. The pleasure, happiness, or satisfaction obtained from consuming a good or service

g. The social science concerned with how individuals, institutions, and society make optimal (best) choices under conditions of scarcity

h. Making choices based on comparing marginal benefits with marginal costs

Refer to the following production possibilities table for consumer goods (automobiles) and capital goods (forklifts).

  1. Show these data graphically. Upon what specific assumptions is this production possibilities curve based?
  2. If the economy is at point C, what is the cost of one more automobile? Of one more forklift? Which characteristic of the production possibilities curve reflects the law of increasing opportunity costs: its shape or its length?
  3. If the economy characterized by this production possibilities table and curve is producing 3 automobiles and 20 forklifts, what could you conclude about its use of its available resources?
  4. Is production at a point outside the production possibilities curve currently possible? Could a future advance in technology allow production beyond the current production possibilities curve? Could international trade allow a country to consume beyond its current production possibilities curve?

Production Alternatives

Type of Production

A

B

C

D

E

Automobiles

0

2

4

6

8

Forklifts

30

27

21

12

0

Pham can work as many or as few hours as she wants at the college bookstore for \(12 per hour. But due to her hectic schedule, she has just 15 hours per week that she can spend working at either the bookstore or other potential jobs. One potential job at a café will pay her \)15 per hour for up to 6 hours per week. She has another job offer at a garage that will pay her \(13 an hour for up to 5 hours per week. And she has a potential job at a daycare center that will pay her \)11.50 per hour for as many hours as she can work. If her goal is to maximize the amount of money she can make each week, how many hours will she work at the bookstore?

Refer to Figure 1.3. Suppose that the cost of cheese falls so that the marginal cost of producing pizza decreases. Will the MC curve shift up or down? Will the optimal amount of pizza increase or decrease? Explain.

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