05CH Microeconomics Amacher

5 Demand and Consumer Choice
Charles O. Cecil/age fotostock/Superstock
Learning Outcomes
After reading this chapter, you should be able to
• Discuss the importance of utility in explaining consumer choice.
• Derive an individual demand curve for a good based on the equation for maximizing total utility and the
principle of diminishing marginal utility.
• Apply utility theory to explanations of consumer behavior.
• Identify and describe the concept of consumer surplus.
• Describe how advertising attempts to increase utility.
© 2019 Bridgepoint Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Not for resale or redistribution.
Choice, Value, and Utility Theory Section 5.1
Introduction
Where you work, where you shop, and all over the world, there are vending machines that
supply everything from soft drinks and snacks to emergency footwear and newspapers. If you
think about it, you will notice a significant difference between the machines that dispense soft
drinks and those that dispense newspapers. After you have deposited the requisite amount
of money, the food and drink machines provide a single can or package through a chute of
some sort, while the newspaper machine allows you to open a door and take one paper from
a stack. Why? Are readers more honest than eaters?
This chapter will help provide an answer to this puzzle. To do this we will look at what deter-
mines consumer choice. Since individual demand curves form the bedrock of microeconomic
analysis, we need to consider the factors that underlie them.
The classical approach economists have taken in examining consumer demand involves the
concept of measurable utility. We will use this approach to examine some problems and sug-
gest some applications for demand analysis. Another approach to consumer demand, indif-
ference curve analysis, is more advanced and beyond the scope of this chapter.
5.1 Choice, Value, and Utility Theory

The idea that households and firms must make choices because of scarcity is the fundamental
notion of economic analysis. We now want to expand on that analysis to consider why con-
sumers behave the way they do. Why does a person demand a certain good or service? An
obvious answer is that the good or service is expected to satisfy some need or desire of the
consumer.
Economists’ view of consumer choice is based on five assumptions about the psychology of
consumer behavior:
1. Consumers (or households) must make choices because they have limited income
and are forced to choose which of their many wants to satisfy.
2. Consumers make rational choices when they make these consumption decisions.
That is, they weigh costs and benefits and make the decision that gives them the
most satisfaction.
3. Consumers make these choices with imperfect information. In other words, they
don’t know (with certainty) all the attributes of the goods they are choosing to
consume.
4. As increasing amounts of a good are consumed, the additional satisfaction gained
from an additional unit becomes smaller.
5. Many goods have qualities that make them satisfactory substitutes for other goods.
All of these statements may seem simple and obvious, but they will enable us to draw some
powerful conclusions about the nature of demand.
Economics in Action: Crunch Into Utility Theory

Using the classic cookie, this video bites straight into utility theory to help us understand
the total amount of satisfaction one gains from a product despite the diminishing marginal
utility. Check out the following clip. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOUJEyy48qY
The History of Utility Theory: The Diamond–Water Paradox

In the early development of economic theory, economists often posed questions that they
then debated. One of the popular debate topics was what determined value. Adam Smith
wrote that value could mean either “value in use” or “value in exchange.” He posed (in 1776)
what became known as the diamond–water paradox:
The things that have the greatest value in use have frequently little or no
value in exchange; and on the contrary, those which have the greatest value
in exchange have frequently little value in use. Nothing is more valuable than
water, but it will purchase scarce anything; scarce anything can be had in
exchange for it. A diamond, on the contrary, has scarce any value in use; but a
very great quantity of other goods may frequently be had in exchange for it.
(Smith)
The diamond–water paradox was the problem that classical economists used when they
argued that value in use could not determine price (value in exchange). Diamonds, although
less useful than water, are more expensive than water. The dialogue about the diamond–water
paradox went on for a long time. Many famous mathematicians, economists, and philoso-
phers took part in the debate. The confusion over the diamond–water paradox arose in part
over disagreement as to what the term useful meant. In the 1870s William Stanley Jevons,
Carl Menger, and Léon Walras, all writing
separately, solved the paradox by developing
a theory of value in which demand and utility
came to the forefront. Their solution played
a major role in developing the theory of con-
sumer demand.
Another part of the debate underlying the

diamond–water paradox was an argument
over whether value (or price) was deter-
mined by supply or demand. In a famous
analogy, Alfred Marshall, the great British Ingram Publishing/Thinkstock
economist, said that one could no more say The diamond–water paradox argues that
whether supply or demand determined value value in use cannot determine price.
than one could say which blade of a pair of Diamonds, for example, are arguably less
scissors did the cutting. That is, value (or useful than water but are more expensive
price) is determined by the interaction of than water.
supply and demand.
We’ll consider the influence of demand on value first and leave supply for later chapters.
Demand theorists use the notion of utility. If a consumer wants a good or service, then that
good or service has utility for that person. Utility is the satisfaction a consumer receives from
consuming a good or service The same good may have a great deal of utility for one person
and none or very little for some other person. Note that in economics, the word utility does
not necessarily mean “useful.” There are a number of items in the real world that are not use-
ful that give great satisfaction.
Total Utility and Marginal Utility

A good unit for the measurement of utility, like the pound or gallon or mile, does not exist.
Since utility is unique to the individual, however, an arbitrary (and imaginary) unit called the
util can be employed. As long as no attempt is made to compare the number of utils of dif-
ferent people, this is a satisfactory measuring device. Such comparisons between people are
inappropriate because the number of utils is a subjective measure of a certain individual’s
satisfaction and as such is not subject to meaningful comparisons. (Some people prefer the
beach to the mountains!)
A relationship that expresses a person’s desire to consume differing amounts of a good is

called a utility function. For example, suppose you try to construct your utility function for
a certain brand of soft drink. First, choose a convenient time period, such as a day. Then, for
one unit (one can) of soda per day, assign an arbitrary number of utils, say 20. (You can choose
any number at all: 1, or 1,000, or 47½.) Ask yourself, if I get 20 utils from one can, how many
would I get if I consumed two cans per day? Suppose, after much reflection, you say 38. Ask
yourself the same question about three cans per day, four, five, six, and so on. You use these
figures to construct a utility schedule, as shown in Table 5.1.
Table 5.1: Utility schedule for soda

Cans of soda per day Total utility (utils) Marginal utility (utils)
1 20 20
2 38 18
3 54 16
4 67 13
5 77 10
6 84 7
7 88 4
8 89 1
9 87 –2
10 82 –5
Marginal utility (MU) is the amount of utility that one more or one less unit consumed adds
to or subtracts from total utility. It is the change in satisfaction provided by one more or one
less unit of consumption. The formula for marginal utility is
change in total utility

MU =
one-unit change in quantity consumed
In Table 5.1 the marginal utility is determined by calculating how much each additional can
of soda adds to total utility. For example, the first can of soda adds 20 utils to total utility. The
fourth can of soda adds 13 utils to total utility. Marginal utility is found by subtracting the
total utility of consuming three sodas from the total utility of consuming that number plus
one (67 – 54 = 13).
The Principle of Diminishing Marginal Utility

The important feature of the schedule shown in Table 5.1 is that, although the total utility
becomes larger the more you consume per day (up to a point), the increases to total utility
from each additional unit consumed become smaller. The fact that additional, or marginal,
utility declines as consumption increases is called diminishing marginal utility.
The principle of diminishing marginal utility states that the greater the level of consump-
tion of a particular good in a given time period, the lower the marginal utility of an additional
unit. As you consume more units of a good, the later units yield less of an addition to total
utility than the preceding units did. For instance, the seventh soda is expected to provide less
additional pleasure than the sixth. This principle is reflected in Table 5.1. Marginal utility falls
from 7 utils for the sixth soda to 4 utils for the seventh.
Figure 5.1(a) shows the total utility curve plotted from Table 5.1. Figure 5.1(b) shows the
marginal utility curve that corresponds to the table. Note that when the total utility curve
reaches its maximum, marginal utility is zero. Thereafter, each additional unit contributes a
negative marginal utility; thus, total utility will be decreased. In Table 5.1 total utility reaches
a maximum at eight sodas per day because the ninth soda has a negative marginal utility.
Utility and Consumer Behavior Section 5.2
Figure 5.1: Total and marginal utility
Total utility increases as consumption increases to a certain level, in this case eight sodas per day, and
then it declines. When total utility is increasing, marginal utility is declining, illustrating the principle
of diminishing marginal utility. At the point that total utility begins to decline, marginal utility becomes
negative.
(a)
Total
utility (utils) Total
100 utility
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Sodas/day
(b)
Marginal
utility (utils)
20
18
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
–2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Sodas/
–4
day
–6 Marginal utility
5.2 Utility and Consumer Behavior

The concepts of utility and price can be combined to show how consumers make choices in
the marketplace. Consumers are confronted with a range of items and also a range of prices.
A consumer may not necessarily choose based solely on which item has the greatest utility;
price and the consumer’s income are also important factors. In other words, consumers don’t
always buy their first choice. You may prefer a Tesla to a Toyota but decide to purchase the
Toyota. The explanation for this behavior lies in the relationship between price and utility.
Suppose, for example, you are considering purchasing a six-pack of soft drinks. You are pre-
sented with the three possibilities shown in Table 5.2. Coca-Cola is your first choice because
to you it yields the most utility. But the relevant question is not which soft drink has the most
utility but rather which has the most utility per dollar. Therefore, you choose to buy a six-pack
of Pepsi. This choice implies that the extra satisfaction of Coca-Cola over Pepsi is not worth
$0.75, but the extra satisfaction of Pepsi over RC Cola is worth $0.25. There are other things
you can do with the extra $0.75. You are saying that $0.75 spent on something other than
soda will yield more additional utils than the difference between the utility of Coke and the
utility of Pepsi, but that $0.25 spent on other goods will not yield more utils than spending it
on Pepsi instead of RC Cola.
Table 5.2: Hypothetical utility-per-dollar comparison

Marginal utility per
Choice Marginal utility (utils) Price (dollars) dollar (utils)
Coca-Cola 30.0 3.75 10
Pepsi 27.0 3.00 12
RC Cola 20.0 2.75 10
Thus, in deciding how to spend your money, you look at marginal utility per dollar rather than
marginal utility alone. You do this because money is the common measure of what you have to
give up. Dollars can be used to buy any available good. So for each dollar you spend, you want
to choose the item with the highest utility per dollar. In doing so, you economize by getting
the most satisfaction per dollar.
Maximizing Total Utility

The self-interest assumption maintains that individuals will act to maximize their total util-
ity. To see how marginal utility and price influence how a consumer maximizes total utility,
consider an example with only two goods, cola and pizza. A unit of cola costs $0.50, and a
unit of pizza costs $1.00. The consumer’s utility schedules for the two goods are presented in
Table 5.3. The consumer has a given amount of income, called a budget constraint. A budget
constraint is a given level of income that determines the maximum amount of goods that
may be purchased by a consumer. Let’s allow this consumer a budget constraint of $13 and
see how that amount will be allocated between the two goods to achieve maximum utility.
Table 5.3: Utility for a consumer of two goods

Cola Pizza
Marginal Total Marginal Total

Quantity utility, utility, Quantity utility, utility,
per week MU MU/P (P TU per week MU MU/P (P TU
(cans) (utils) = $0.50) (utils) (pieces) (utils) = $1.00) (utils)
1 15 30 15 1 32 32 32
2 14 28 29 2 31 31 63
3 13 26 42 3 28 28 91
4 12 24 54 4 24.75 24.75 115.75
5 11 22 65 5 20.25 20.25 136
6 10.75 21.5 75.75 6 18 18 154
7 10.25 20.5 86 7 17 17 171
8 10 20 96 8 16 16 187
9 9 18 105 9 14 14 201
10 8 16 113 10 12 12 213
11 7 14 120 11 11 11 224
12 6.5 13 126.5 12 9 9 233
The first dollar will be allocated to pizza because a dollar’s worth of pizza (one piece) yields
32 utils of satisfaction compared with 29 utils for a dollar’s worth of cola (two cans). The
next dollar will also be spent on pizza because it yields 31 utils, which is still greater than the
first dollar’s worth of cola, the alternative purchase. In other words, the consumer buys two
pieces of pizza before buying any cola. The third dollar is spent on cola because the 29 utils of
satisfaction gained from purchasing two cans are greater than the 28 utils that are yielded by
a third piece of pizza. The process continues until the entire income of $13 is spent. In maxi-
mizing total utility, the consumer will spend $5 on 10 cans of cola and $8 on eight pieces of
pizza. This allocation produces 300 utils of satisfaction—the maximum total utility that can
be purchased with $13 of income. You cannot find a different combination of cola and pizza
that will produce more satisfaction (try reducing cola consumption by two cans and increas-
ing pizza consumption by one piece, or vice versa).
The consumer’s choices are based on a maximization rule that says that total utility is maxi-
mized when the last dollar spent on good A yields the same utility as the last dollar spent on
good B. In algebraic form, total utility is maximized when
Marginal utility of good A Marginal utility of good B

=
Price of good A Price of good B
This can be written
MUA MUB
=
PA PB
The marginal utility of a can of cola, when 10 cans per week are consumed, is 8 utils, and the
price of a can is $0.50. Thus,
MUcola 8
= = 16 utils per dollar
Pcola $0.50
For pizza, at the optimum consumption rate, the marginal utility is 16, and the price is $1.
Thus,
MUpizza 16
= = 16 utils per dollar
Ppizza $1.00
Of course, individuals don’t spend all their income on goods. Sometimes individuals hold
money as they do any other commodity. Including money (symbolized by $), the equation for
maximization of utility is
MUA MUB MU$

= =
PA PB P$
Utility maximization is the process by which a consumer adjusts consumption, given a bud-
get constraint and a set of prices, in order to attain the highest total amount of satisfaction.
The equation above is an expression for utility maximization. It includes all commodities,
even money. This equation says that in order to maximize total utility, the marginal utilities
per dollar of all goods consumed have to be equal and also have to equal the marginal utility
of money. If this is not the case, a change in the consumption pattern can produce more satis-
faction for a given budget constraint. This equation is just a formal way of saying that people
allocate their income so as to yield the most satisfaction possible. When utility is being maxi-
mized, the additional satisfaction from any use of a dollar will equal the additional satisfac-
tion from any other use of that dollar. When this is not the case, the consumer can reallocate
personal income from one good to another and gain more satisfaction.
To see how a given consumption pattern can be adjusted to achieve maximum utility, look
again at Table 5.3. Let’s give Shandra an income of $9 and say that she uses it to buy $3 worth
of cola and $6 worth of pizza. The expression
MUcola MUpizza
=
Pcola Ppizza
doesn’t hold because
10.75 18
>
0.50 1
Shandra isn’t maximizing her utility, because the last dollar she spent on cola yielded more
utils than the last dollar she spent on pizza. Shandra should reallocate her consumption out-
lays. By giving up a dollar’s worth of pizza, she will lose 18 utils. But she will gain 20.25 utils
by spending that dollar on more cola. Her total utility will thus rise by 2 (rounded off), and
10 20.25
<
0.50 1
By purchasing eight cans of cola and five pieces of pizza, Shandra is maximizing utility with a
$9 budget constraint.
Marginal Utility and the Law of Demand

Utility theory makes it possible to derive a consumer’s demand curve for a good (good x).
Suppose there are only two goods, x and y. Remember, demand curves are drawn assuming
everything else remains the same. That is, income, tastes, and the prices of all other goods
(good y) are held constant. The consumer is initially in equilibrium, maximizing utility when
MUx MUy
=
Px Py
At this equilibrium, MUx1 corresponds to the consumption of x1 units of good x in Figure 5.2.
The price of x1 units is represented by P1 in Figure 5.2.
Figure 5.2: Demand curve for good x
When price falls from P1 to P2, the consumer’s utility maximization is thrown out of equilibrium.
Equilibrium will be restored if the consumer increases consumption to x2.
Price
P1
P2
Dx
0 x1 x2 Quantity/
time period
Now suppose the price of good x falls to P2. This change throws the expression out of equi-
librium because the denominator on the left side is now smaller, making the left side of the
expression larger.
To get back into equilibrium, the consumer has to lower the value of the left side of the
expression and/or raise the value of the right side. How can this be done? If the individual
consumes more of x, MUx will decline because of the principle of diminishing marginal utility.
As consumption moves to x2 on Figure 5.2, the marginal utility of good x falls. Furthermore,
consuming more of x will mean some reduction in the consumption of y. As consumption of
y falls, MUy rises.
Utility-maximizing behavior requires that when the price of good x falls (as from P1 to P2 in
Figure 5.2), the consumer will increase consumption of x. Since this is necessary for utility
maximization, it demonstrates that the demand curves of individuals must have a negative
slope. That is, the lower the price of a good, the greater the quantity demanded.
Problems With Utility Theory

There are two major problems with a demand theory based on utility. The first problem is
that some goods are not divisible. The second, more serious problem is that utility cannot be
measured.
The theory works well enough to describe the consumption of certain kinds of goods, such as
soft drinks or pizzas. When the good being consumed is an automobile or a home, however,
it is difficult to talk about additional units because the purchase is “lumpy.” It is very difficult
to consume a part of a house or a part of a car, but it is common to consume part of a six-pack
of cola.
This problem with utility theory is really not a major flaw. Consumers can still make adjust-
ments with most lumpy purchases. Consider a house as an example. Suppose the consumer
decides after the purchase that the house is too large and that other purchases would yield
more marginal utility. Over time, expenditures on the house can be lowered by a lessening of
routine maintenance so that more can be spent on the other goods that yield a higher mar-
ginal utility. Buying a smaller house, buying one at a less desirable location, and renting are
also available alternatives.
A greater problem with utility theory is that it is impossible to measure utility. We have pro-
ceeded as if there were a way we could strap a meter to a consumer and exactly measure the
utility expected from consuming one more unit, somewhat like measuring temperature or
blood pressure. This is, of course, not possible. But before you reject utility theory as useless,
remember that it is a theoretical tool. It really isn’t that important for the theory of demand to
be able to measure utility. The purpose of utility theory is to develop a better understanding
of why and how quantity demanded will change when prices change.
Check Point: Utility Theory

• Assumptions of model
Individual has budget constraint.
Individual gets utility from consumption.
Marginal utility diminishes as consumption rises.
• Maximization
Utility is maximized when the marginal utility per dollar spent on all goods (and the
marginal utility of money) is equal.
• There are testable implications.
Quantity demanded is inversely related to price, ceteris paribus.
As the price of good rises, the demand for substitutes will increase, ceteris paribus.
As income rises, the demand for normal goods will increase, ceteris paribus.
Policy Focus: Progressive Income Taxation—Are Utility

Functions Interdependent?
Many noneconomists believe that money and income are subject to diminishing marginal
utility. This idea is one of the main arguments (but certainly not the only one) for a
progressive income tax. A progressive tax takes a larger percentage of dollars from those
earning high incomes, because for them a dollar’s marginal utility is thought to be low.
A smaller percentage of dollars is taken from those taxpayers earning lower incomes,
because for them a dollar’s marginal utility is thought to be much higher. This argument
assumes that it is possible to measure utility and to make interpersonal utility comparisons.
Such comparisons are attempts to measure the utility of one individual relative to that of
another. One way to avoid directly comparing utilities for different people is to assume that
individuals all have the same utility schedule for given levels of income. With these two
assumptions, proponents of the progressive income tax argue that society can maximize
total utility by taking income away from high-income individuals, who have lower marginal
utilities of income, and transferring it to low-income individuals, who have higher marginal
utilities of income.
Those who apply principles of individual utility maximization to a society as a whole are on
very shaky ground, however. First, economists generally believe that interpersonal utility
comparisons are not feasible. People are different. There is no way you can prove that an
additional $100 of income gives less satisfaction to actress Jennifer Lawrence than to an
unemployed autoworker. In fact, Lawrence might get more satisfaction from being an expert
consumer. It is impossible to prove that one individual gets more or less satisfaction from an
income increment than any other individual does.
A second and more fundamental problem with this analysis is that it assumes a diminishing
marginal utility for income, or goods and services in general. This proposition cannot be
proved. The principle of diminishing marginal utility, you will remember, states that the
marginal utility of a particular good declines as consumption is increased. Increased income,
however, represents an increase in the consumption of all goods. If wants are insatiable,
there is no reason to believe that the principle of diminishing marginal utility holds for
money or income. Even so, it is probably the case that most people think that income has
diminishing marginal utility. What do you think?
There may be other arguments for progressive income taxes. In other cases, when income is
very unequally distributed, the only substantial source of revenue for the government to tap
may be income taxes on the very wealthy. There may be subjective interpretations of what is
equitable or fair that go way beyond the scope of economics. All economics has to say on the
subject is that diminishing marginal utility is not a valid argument for progressive income
taxation.
Income and Substitution Effects

The law of demand, which you studied in Chapter 3, states that as the price of a good or ser-
vice declines, the quantity demanded increases, all else being equal. This law is true because
of two effects that result from the price decline.
Some Applications of Utility Theory Section 5.3
The first effect is called the substitution effect. When the price of a good (or service) falls,
the good becomes less expensive relative to all other goods. As a result, consumers purchase
more of it because it has become a better substitute for other goods as it has become cheaper.
Steaks and ground beef provide a good example. As the price of steak falls, more people will
switch from ground beef to steaks.
The second effect of a price decline is called the income effect. When the price of a good or
service falls, all else being equal, the consumer’s real income, or purchasing power, rises. That
is, after buying the same amount as before (of the good for which price has fallen), the con-
sumer has more income left over. With this higher real income, more of all normal goods will
be consumed. Thus, the consumption of the good whose price declined also will increase (if
it is a normal good). Income and substitution effects, along with diminishing marginal utility,
explain why demand curves slope down from left to right.
5.3 Some Applications of Utility Theory

You have practiced and observed utility maximization in your own life even though you may
not have thought of it in the formal language of economics. Suppose, for example, you are
organizing the wine concession for an alumni event. There are two ways to run the conces-
sion: You can charge an admission fee to the event and then allow unlimited consumption, or
you can charge a set price for each glass of wine, say $5. Utility theory predicts different levels
of consumption for these two alternatives and thus different requirements for planning the
supply. In the first case, wine drinkers will consume wine until the marginal utility per glass
is zero, because the price per additional glass is zero. In the second case, wine drinkers will
consume wine until the marginal utility per glass equals the marginal utility of $5. You can
predict, then, that there will be more drunken behavior if the party is financed by an admis-
sion charge.
This example may seem insignificant because the consumption of wine isn’t a very earth-
shaking issue. Let’s change the good from wine to medical services. If the government were
to provide free national health care, what do
you predict would happen to the consump-
tion of these services? People would con-
sume them until the marginal utility of the
last unit is zero. This is exactly what tends
to happen with a prepaid or tax-financed
health care system.
Take, for example, the Affordable Care Act

of 2010. Census data from 2016 indicated
that the overall rate of uninsured individu-
als had reached a new low of 9.1%. White
monkeybusinessimages/iStock/Thinkstock House economic advisers issued a joint
Utility maximization is practiced and observed statement that said, “Every State has seen
in everyday life. For example, utility theory can declines in its uninsured rate since 2013 as
help predict what might happen if the govern- the major coverage provisions of the Afford-
ment were to provide free national health care. able Care Act have taken effect” (Goldstein,
Some Applications of Utility Theory Section 5.3
2016, para. 8). Although the number of visits to hospitals and community health centers
increased, as expected, these additional visits were primarily for adults receiving preventive
care. A recent study found that among Medicare fee-for-service patients, the annual use of
preventive visits, like cancer screenings, rose from 1.4% before the implementation of the
Affordable Care Act to 27.5% afterward (Chung et al., 2015). Preventive visits are far less
costly than urgent or emergency visits later on, which led to slower growth in health care
costs (Schoen, 2016). It is important to recognize that utility theory was able to predict an
increase in the consumption of health care services but not necessarily the type of services,
which means that it only helps us understand one aspect of such a policy change.
The Diamond–Water Paradox Explained

Adam Smith (and others) argued that utility (and thus demand) could not be a determinant
of price because diamonds, while less useful than water, are more expensive than water. The
paradox disappears if we distinguish between total utility and marginal utility. The total util-
ity of water is high. However, since there is a great deal in existence and large quantities
are consumed, its marginal utility is low. The total utility of diamonds, on the other hand, is
relatively low. However, since diamonds are rare, their marginal utility is high. Price, then, is
determined by marginal utility, not total utility. Economists say that marginal utility deter-
mines value in exchange (price) and that total utility determines value in use. Price, then, is
related to scarcity through utility. If something has a low marginal utility at all quantities con-
sumed, it will have a low price, regardless of how scarce it is. If something is relatively scarce
and has a high marginal utility, it will be valuable and thus expensive.
Shopping for Bargains

Economists have used the concept of utility-maximizing behavior to analyze shopping behav-
ior. The idea is that a buyer will search for bargains until the expected savings in value or util-
ity equals the cost of continued searching.
Several predictions can be made from this theory. The first is that the larger the amount indi-
viduals expect to save, the longer they will continue to search. In other words, the bigger the
item in terms of your budget, the more you will shop around. You will search longer for a good
price on a car than for a good price on a loaf of bread. You might even buy bread at a convenience
store, where you know the price is higher, to save some shopping time. The second prediction
is that, in percentage terms, the variation in prices for bigger budget items should be smaller
than the variation in prices for smaller budget items. The search process will drive high-price
sellers of large items out of business or force them to reduce their prices. The third prediction
is that when search costs are higher, price differences between sellers could be higher without
driving the high-priced sellers out of business. Have you ever noticed that prices of gasoline
Consumer Surplus and Utility Section 5.4
are higher near freeways than in towns? Utility-maximizing theory can explain this phenom-
enon. Users of freeways are going somewhere, often in a hurry. Their search costs are high.
They therefore do less shopping around and as a result pay higher prices.
The Internet plays an important role by drastically reducing search costs, which may also
have an impact on prices and buying behavior. Price comparison websites like GoSale.com
and PriceGrabber now do the work for consumers by providing prices from a variety of sell-
ers at the click of a button. Chiou and Pate (2010) found evidence of greater searching by
price-sensitive shoppers, which generally leads to lower prices for all goods on the Internet.
Economics in Action: Follow Your Cravings

The Khan Academy explains marginal utility through chocolate bars and fruits. As an
individual craves more chocolate and fruit, he or she will consider the satisfaction of each
product individually and against each other. When price gets involved, marginal utility helps
the individual decide how to gain the most “bang for the buck.” Find out for yourself by
visiting the Khan Academy website (http://www.khanacademy.org), and then searching for
the video “Marginal Utility and Total Utility.”
5.4 Consumer Surplus and Utility

Consumers often benefit in a market economy because they are able to purchase a good or
service by sacrificing something that is worth less to them than the value of what they receive.
Consumer surplus is the extra utility derived from a purchase that has a value to the con-
sumer greater than the market price. Utility theory provides a measure of consumer surplus.
Consider the demand curve for a single consumer in Figure 5.3. At price P1 the individual will
consume Q1 units of the good. According to the theory of utility-maximizing behavior, the
marginal utility of the last unit purchased is equal to the price of the unit. This means that
the marginal utility of each previous unit purchased was greater than price P1. The consumer
would have been willing to pay higher prices for those previous units, so at the market price
of P1 the consumer receives a bonus in terms of utility on all units but the last one. The total
purchase is worth more to the consumer than the total amount (price times quantity) that is
paid. This extra utility gained is called consumer surplus and is represented by the shaded
area in Figure 5.3. Consumer surplus will be an important concept when we study monopoly.
The next Global Outlook box describes an application of consumer surplus in international
trade.
Advertising, Marketing, and Demand Section 5.5
Figure 5.3: Consumer surplus
The consumer surplus is the shaded area above the price P1 and below the demand curve.
Price
Consumer
surplus
P1
0 Q1 Quantity/
time period
5.5 Advertising, Marketing, and Demand

The theory developed in this chapter explains a great deal about demand and consumer equi-
librium. It does not say anything about the role of advertising and marketing. Advertising and
marketing are difficult topics for economists
to deal with because economic analysis usu-
ally assumes that consumers are informed,
rational utility maximizers who know their
own tastes and preferences. Advertising
and marketing are not, however, inconsis-
tent with those basic assumptions.
Advertisers spend a great deal of time trying

to alter consumers’ tastes and perceptions.
If enough tastes and perceptions can be
changed that the average consumer’s util-
ity from the firm’s product can be increased,
more will be demanded. Changes in tastes Richard Levine/Corbis News/Getty Images
do not mean that the consumer is not ratio- Advertisers spend a great deal of time trying to
nal. Even without advertising, tastes would alter consumers’ tastes and perceptions. Much
change over time with changes in age, edu- advertising is directed toward making consum-
cation, and other factors. Some tastes even ers demand more by convincing them that
change regularly with the change of season. other products are not satisfactory.
Advertising, Marketing, and Demand Section 5.5
Global Outlook: Pity the Poor Japanese Consumer!

Although the average applied tariff rate in Japan is one of the lowest in the world, the country
still places high tariffs on food products to protect an efficient and powerful political lobby in
Japan called the Japan Agriculture Group. In 2017 Japan had tariff rates of 0.1% on electrical
machinery and 2.2% on chemicals, but a tariff of 12.9% on agriculture products (Export.gov,
2017). Protectionists, or people who advocate shielding a country’s domestic industries from
foreign competition, would insist that Japan should not join the trade partnership unless
it can maintain high protective tariffs on the five “sacred” products: rice, wheat, beef and
poultry, dairy, and sugar.
American rice farmers complain bitterly to the U.S. government about tariffs such as those
set by Japan. In fact, U.S. producers of goods that the Japanese export to the United States
use these high tariffs in Japan as an argument that the United States should impose tariffs on
Japanese goods to create a “level playing field.” Let’s examine the effect of Japanese tariffs on
Japanese consumers.
Tariffs have many effects. They reduce the efficiency of resource allocation. They redistribute
income between countries and between producers and consumers within countries. They
raise revenue for the countries that impose them. All of the economic effects of tariffs are
important and will be discussed in the chapter on international trade. It is possible, however,
to use the concept of consumer surplus developed in this chapter to see how tariffs affect the
well-being of Japanese consumers.
What happens if the government imposes a tariff? A tariff permits domestic producers to sell
more of a product at a higher price, and government revenues rise by the amount of the tariff
times the imported quantity. However, consumers experience a decline in consumer surplus.
The citizens that suffer the most from tariffs are the country’s own domestic consumers.
The problem is that they are not an effective lobbying group, while Japanese farmers are.
Given what we know about economics, what would we expect to see? In recent years a small
but growing number of Japanese consumers and businesses are doing what economics
would predict: abandoning their loyalty to expensive, premium-grade homegrown rice and
switching to cheaper alternatives from China, Australia, and the United States (Tabuchi,
2012). If this trend continues, the downward pressure on domestic prices may lead Japanese
farmers to rethink their strategy.
Economics in Action: Japanese Farmers Reject Free Trade

Farmers in Japan meet and discuss the future of agricultural trade and the impact of rising
food prices globally. See more here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Dn-fFsivEI.
Conclusion
Conclusion
You should now be able to explain why the vending machine technology is different for
newspapers than it is for food and drink. It surely has nothing to do with technology. It
would be easy to have the paper delivered to you in the same way a pack of Skittles comes
out of the machine. The explanation is in marginal utility analysis. Newspaper companies
know that for most people the marginal utility of the second paper is zero—maybe even
negative because you have to get rid of it. So most people will be honest. Have you ever
taken a second paper when you only paid for one? If you did, perhaps the reason was that
you anticipated that you would have to share the paper, and as a result the second paper had
positive utility. It is easy for newspapers to “trust” the honesty of people because the second
unit of what they sell is “worthless.”
Key Ideas
1. Total utility is the total amount of satisfaction expected from consuming an item.
Marginal utility is the change in total utility from consuming one more or one less
unit of a good.
2. Consumers, in deciding among items, choose those items with the highest marginal
utility per dollar. An individual maximizes total utility by consuming all items so
that their marginal utilities per dollar spent are equal. When the price of a good or
service falls, the quantity demanded increases because of income effects and substi-
tution effects.
3. Marginal utility determines value in exchange (price), and total utility determines
value in use.
4. Consumer surplus is the extra utility derived from a purchase that has a value to
the consumer that is greater than the price paid. In this sense, consumer surplus is
bonus utility to the consumer.
5. If advertising can change tastes and perceptions, the utility a consumer gets from
the advertised product will increase.
Critical-Thinking Questions
1. How is the diamond–water paradox useful in explaining the difference between a
useful good and a good that has utility?
2. What is diminishing marginal utility, and why is it important?
3. How does the presence of a budget constraint limit the maximum utility possible?
4. What is consumer surplus, and how is it related to utility?
5. The topics in this chapter discuss rational consumer behavior. Is it ever rational to be
irrational?
6. How does the presence of outlet stores impact consumer surplus?
7. If the developers of the Microsoft Surface tablet use flashy advertising to increase
sales, how are they trying to impact consumer utility?
8. The marginal utility of one good is 3 and its price $4.00, and the marginal utility of
another good is 6 and its price $2.00. According to consumer choice, based on the
maximization rule, is the consumer maximizing utility? Explain.
9. Observers of the wealthy often comment on the fact that they tend to waste a lot of
things, like food, but are very careful in their use of time. Is this irrational behavior?
Conclusion
10. If your rent doubles in one year, what happens to your budget constraint? How
would this change the quantity and types of goods you purchase?
11. What would you expect to happen to a normal consumer’s total utility for steak if
the surgeon general confirmed a link between the consumption of beef and certain
cancers?
12. When restaurants offer all-you-can-eat buffets, they typically have restrictions. What
restrictions might they want to impose, and how are these related to utility theory?
13. If the government wanted to propose a more progressive tax system, how could it try
to use the concept of diminishing marginal utility in its argument?
14. Does advertising increase or decrease the utility you receive from consuming certain
goods? Is this good or bad? Should certain types of advertising be regulated by the
government?
15. How would a university policy to make food on campus more affordable for students
impact the university’s utility? Are there other positive outcomes?
Key Terms
budget constraint A given level of income principle of diminishing marginal utility
that determines the maximum amount of The fact that the additional utility declines
goods that may be purchased by a consumer. as quantity consumed increases. Less sat-
isfaction is obtained per additional unit as
consumer surplus The extra utility derived more units are consumed.
from a purchase that has value to the con-
sumer greater than the market price. substitution effect An increase in the
quantity demanded of a good (or services)
diamond–water paradox The fact that dia- because its price has fallen and it becomes a
monds, although less useful than water, are better substitute for all other goods.
more expensive than water; that is, things
with the greatest value in exchange (price) util An arbitrary unit used to measure indi-
often have little value in use. vidual utility.
income effect An increase in demand for utility The satisfaction that a consumer
a good (or service) when its price falls, receives from consuming a good or service.
ceteris paribus, because the household’s real
income rises and the consumer buys more of utility function A relationship expressing
all normal goods. a consumer’s desire to consume differing
amounts of a good.
marginal utility (MU) The amount of
utility that one more or one less unit of utility maximization The process by which
consumption adds to or subtracts from total a consumer adjusts consumption, given
utility. a budget constraint and a set of prices, in
order to attain the highest total amount of
satisfaction.

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5 Demand and Consumer Choice

Charles O. Cecil/age fotostock/Superstock

5.1 Choice, Value, and Utility Theory

Economics in Action: Crunch Into Utility Theory

The History of Utility Theory: The Diamond–Water Paradox

Another part of the debate underlying the

Total Utility and Marginal Utility

A relationship that expresses a person’s desire to consume differing amounts of a good is

Table 5.1: Utility schedule for soda

change in total utility

The Principle of Diminishing Marginal Utility

Figure 5.1: Total and marginal utility

5.2 Utility and Consumer Behavior

Table 5.2: Hypothetical utility-per-dollar comparison

Coca-Cola 30.0 3.75 10

Pepsi 27.0 3.00 12

RC Cola 20.0 2.75 10

Maximizing Total Utility

Table 5.3: Utility for a consumer of two goods

Marginal Total Marginal Total

4 12 24 54 4 24.75 24.75 115.75

5 11 22 65 5 20.25 20.25 136

6 10.75 21.5 75.75 6 18 18 154

7 10.25 20.5 86 7 17 17 171

12 6.5 13 126.5 12 9 9 233

Marginal utility of good A Marginal utility of good B

MUA MUB MU$

doesn’t hold because

Marginal Utility and the Law of Demand

Figure 5.2: Demand curve for good x

Problems With Utility Theory

Check Point: Utility Theory

Policy Focus: Progressive Income Taxation—Are Utility

Income and Substitution Effects

5.3 Some Applications of Utility Theory

Take, for example, the Affordable Care Act

The Diamond–Water Paradox Explained

Shopping for Bargains

Economics in Action: Follow Your Cravings

5.4 Consumer Surplus and Utility

Figure 5.3: Consumer surplus

5.5 Advertising, Marketing, and Demand

Advertisers spend a great deal of time trying

Global Outlook: Pity the Poor Japanese Consumer!

Economics in Action: Japanese Farmers Reject Free Trade

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