Monash University Handbook 2010 Undergraduate - Unit

Synopsis

This unit introduces economic principles underlying consumer choice and market demand; describing consumer preferences, indifference curves and budget constraints, with particular emphasis on the role of prices as conveyors of information. It introduces economic tools and concepts for the analyses of consumption choices over time, under uncertainty and/or with risk, and in markets with asymmetric information. Other topics include work-leisure choice, wage changes and the supply of labour, and the provision of public goods and environmental goods. An examination of observed economic and social outcomes from the point of view of various normative criteria completes the coverage.

Objectives

The learning goals associated with this unit are to:

• understand economic models of household consumption which explain the allocation of resources over a variety of goods
• understand the allocation of income between savings and consumption, and the allocation of expenditures over the life cycle
• analyse data on household expenditure patterns
• understand the role of government over consumer protection
• analyse the role and impact of e-commerce on the way consumers choose in the marketplace.

Assessment

Within semester assessment: 40%
Examination (2 hours): 60%

Chief examiner(s)

Rebecca Valenzuela

Contact hours

3 hours per week

Prerequisites

ECF1100