importance of indifference curve with diagram

Combination L contains more of both goods X and Y than combination M on IC1. (11) Both preference and indifference are transitive. Since we are assuming that subsidy paid by the Government is half the market price of food, the consumer would pay half the market price. You consent to our cookies if you continue to use our website. In other words, the combinations which lie on a higher indifference curve will be preferred to the combinations which lie on a lower indifference curve. It is worth noting that wage rate is the opportunity cost of leisure. Thus, with the rise in wage rate, supply of labour has decreased by L0L1. An indifference curve shows all combinations of goods that provide an equal level of utility or satisfaction. Another important result obtained from our above analysis is that even with food stamps programme the individual increases the consumption of all other goods (i.e. Theindifference curve in economicsexamines demand patterns for commodity combinations, budget constraints and helps understand customer preferences. Consumer goods are the products purchased by the buyers for consumption and not for resale. 200. We cannot predict the specific result purely on theoretical grounds. Meaning of Indifference Curve: The indifference curve analysis measures utility ordinally. For example, Figure 1 presents three indifference curves that represent Lilly's preferences for the tradeoffs that she faces in her two main relaxation activities: eating doughnuts and reading paperback books. It is assumed that consumers preferences are monotonic i.e. To do so we take away so much income from the individual that he comes back to the original indifference curve IC1. It will be observed that binding by rationing lowers his level of welfare as he is forced to come to the point L on a lower indifference IC0 where he consumes less of good Y and more of good X than he prefers. cannot always be validly applied to the Government subsidy programme since the above principle is based upon the subjective benefits to the individuals which is not always the correct criteria to judge the desirability of Government subsidy programme. The Derivation of Demand Curves from Indifference Curves on JSTOR. The indifference curve analysis work on a simple graph having two-dimensional. 10 per kg., then with Rs. Under what conditions supply curve of labour (i.e. The loss of satisfaction to the consumer on account of the downward movement must be made up by the gain through the rightward movement. Share Your PPT File. The better substitutes the two goods are for each other, the closer the indifference curve approaches to the straight-line so that when the two goods are perfect substitutes, the indifference curve is a straight line. If the amount substituted is imperfect, the marginal rate of substitutionMarginal Rate Of SubstitutionThe marginal rate of substitution (MRS) is the rate at which some units of an item can be replaced by another while providing the same level of satisfaction to the consumer.read more will be constant. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". If the graph is on the curve or line, then it means that the consumer has no preference for any goods, because all the good has the same level of satisfaction or utility to the consumer. It could be calculated by dividing the additional utility by the amount of additional units.read more theory, the subjective theory of value, substitution effects, income, ordinal utility, etc. The indifference curve analysis retains some of the assumptions of the cardinal theory, rejects others and formulates its own. The ordinal utility theory or the indifference curve analysis is based on the assumptions as discussed above. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. Indifference curves are heuristic devices used in contemporary microeconomics to demonstrate consumer preference and the limitations of a budget. When the wage rate rises to W1 (budget constraint becomes TM1 in panel (a) of Fig. Consider Fig. That is, income is earned by sacrificing some leisure. In other words, to increase leisure by one hour, an individual has to forego the opportunity of earning income (equal to wage per hour) which he can earn by doing work for an hour. The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". In panel (b), the information supplied by the wage-offer curve, that is, the supply of labour (work-hours) by the individual at different wage rates is shown directly as, in this panel, supply of labour (hours worked) is measured along the X-axis and wage rate along the Y-axis. They may represent higher or lower satisfaction of the consumer. It will be seen from Fig. Before publishing your articles on this site, please read the following pages: 1. 1. Since the food stamps are in addition to his initial income OB1 his budget line with food stamps becomes a kinked line B1 CL2. Examples of goods that are perfect substitutes are not difficult to find in the real world. If the individual can work for all the 24 hours in a day, he would earn income equal to OM. In the above image, the combination outside the budget line (S) represents the one beyond the income. In this case with cash subsidy the individual spends more than his initial income OB1 on other goods. Thus, the maximum amount of leisure time that an individual can enjoy per day equals 24 hours. Microeconomics is a bottom-up approach where patterns from everyday life are pieced together to correlate demand and supply. To break up this wage effect on labour supply, we reduce his money income by compensating variation in income. With stamps of Rs. By clicking Accept, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. Therefore, in economics leisure is regarded as a normal commodity the enjoyment of which yields satisfaction to the individual. In this case, therefore, B1C, will be equal to 20 kg. That is why at point K in Fig. Now let us assume that he is given the cash subsidy of B1 B2 so that with the given market price of food, budget line shifts to B2L2. Thus, the cash transfer equivalent to the cost of price subsidy has led to the greater increase in welfare or satisfaction of the individual as compared to the price subsidy. A higher indifference curves to the right of another represents a higher level of satisfaction and preferable combination of the two goods. We use cookies to personalise content and ads, to provide social media features and to analyse our traffic. Ms. Bain is indifferent among combinations W, X, and Y. It is thus clear that for an individual supplier of labour income effect and substitution effects work in opposite directions. The latter shows the various combinations of the two commodities such that the consumer is indifferent to those combinations. In other words, PN is the market price of OA quantity of food. If the Government provides the consumer lump-sum cash grant of RM instead of price subsidy on food, this will amount to increasing the money income of the consumer by RM amount. Thus, if a person chooses combination C, this means that he has OL1 amount of leisure time and OM1 amount of income. Let us suppose that the individual has OP money income. The slope of the budget line represents the relative pricing of two commodities. With TM1 he reaches his old equilibrium position at point H where he supplies TL1 work-hours. 11.8 he is at lower indifference curve IC0 indicating his lower level of welfare. an indifference curve helps the consumer to determine . Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. On the other hand, the rise in wage rate increases the opportunity cost or price of leisure, that is, it makes enjoyment of leisure relatively more expensive. The marginal rate of substitution (MRS) is the rate at which some units of an item can be replaced by another while providing the same level of satisfaction to the consumer. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Indifference curve analysis can be used to explain an individuals choice between income and leisure and to show why a higher overtime wage rate must be paid if more hours of work are to be obtained from the workers. MRSxy is always diminishing. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. It explains consumer behaviour in terms of his preferences or rankings for different combinations of two goods, say X and Y. Suppose to begin with the wage rate is w0 and if all the available hours OT are used to do work, OM0 money income is earned. Answer (1 of 3): The following points highlight the top nine advantages of indifference curve technique over marshallian utility analysis. Further, income is used to purchase goods, other than leisure for consumption. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. An indifference curve denotes a set of different combinations of two commodities or goods, providing the same level of satisfaction to the consumer. A higher indifference curve shows a higher level of satisfaction. In Figure 11.9 with a given income and prices of the two goods X and Y the consumer is in equilibrium at E buying OM of commodity X and ON of commodity Y. (12) The consumer is in a position to order all possible combinations of the two goods. Therefore, as a result of rise in wage rate individual substitutes work (and therefore income) for leisure which leads to the increase in supply of labour. This website includes study notes, research papers, essays, articles and other allied information submitted by visitors like YOU. This must be so if the level of satisfaction is to remain the same on an indifference curve. As stated above, when two goods are perfect substitutes of each other, the indifference curve is a straight line on which marginal rate of substitution remains constant. Thus the trade-off between income and leisure at this point is M/L. Third important property of indifference curves is that they cannot intersect each other In other words only one indifference curve will pass through a point in the indifference map 1 his property can be easily proved by first making the two indifference curves cut each other and then showing the absurdity or self-contradictory result it leads to. It will be seen from Figure 11.1 that budget line EF touches the indifference curve IC at a point S and is buying OB quantity of food. The less the ease with which two goods can be substituted for each other, the greater will be the fall in the marginal rate of substitution. For instance, the aim of Governments food subsidy programme may be that the needy families should consume more food so that their health and efficiency may be improved. If the government is eager to raise the tax revenue and at that time the government may face the issue regarding whether it . (3) The consumer possesses complete information about the prices of the goods in the market. Economists have adopted the principles of. Our mission is to provide an online platform to help students to discuss anything and everything about Economics. An indifference curve is the locus of all those combinations of two goods that yields the same level of utility (satisfaction) to the consumer so that the consumer is indifferent to purchase the particular combination s/he selects. And this later substitution effect caused due to the price-distortion by the indirect tax further reduces his welfare. As in case of change in price, rise in wage rate has both the substitution effect and income effect. Hence, the curve obtained is always convex. But given the preferences of the individual between food and other goods, he is in equilibrium at the same point E2 at which his budget line B2L2 is target to the indifference curve IC2. 4 Important Properties of Indifference Curve (with curve diagram) - - StuDocu. It makes the consumer indifferent to any of the combinations of goods shown as points on the curve. In our Figure PE = MK (the vertical distance between two parallel lines) and RM is greater than MK. It does not store any personal data. Income Effect and Substitution Effect of the Change in Wage Rate: Now the supply curve of labour does not always slope upward as is shown in Fig. In the curve, the quantity consumed by B2 will compensate for the increase in the amount consumed by B2. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Thus, the cash money equivalent of the price subsidy to the individual is less than the cost of the subsidy to the Government. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc. He is also satisfied with 2 units of cloth and 4 units of books. Now, if no food subsidy was given and therefore the price line was PL1, then for buying OA quantity of food, the individual would have spent PN amount of money. Effect of Rationing On Consumers Welfare: Indifference curve analysis can be used to explain under what conditions rationing of goods by the Government can act as binding or a constraint on consumers choices and further how it affects his welfare. Hence, a consumer prefers to reach the tallest line to attain a higher utility level. Combination Q has been taken on a higher indifference curve IC2 and combination S on a lower indifference curve IC1. All other points on the budget line to the left or right of point 'E' will lie on lower indifference curves and thus indicate a . It follows therefore that for good K ration limit is actually binding as it forces the consumer to point K on a lower indifference curve IC0 than optimum point E on indifference curve IC, at which he would have been without the restriction of rationing. Since the consumer cannot use food stamps to buy non-food items (other goods) he cannot spend more than his initial income OB1 on other goods. read more, theory of exchange, etc. Thus, his preferences are such that rationing is not actually binding for him. will work for less hours). When a consumer wants to have more of a commodity, he/she will have to give up some of the other commodity, given that the consumer remains on the same level of utility at constant income. Second, wage rate is the same irrespective of the number of hours he chooses to work. The effect of this subsidy on consumers welfare and money value of this subsidy to the consumer is illustrated in Figure 11.1 where the quantity of food is measured on the X- axis and money on the Y-axis. On the other hand, an indirect tax not only reduces the purchasing power or real income of the consumer causing income effect, but also produces price-induced substitution effect and thus forcing him to purchase less of the commodity on which indirect tax has been levied and buy more of the non-taxed commodity. In the following schedule (Table 1), the consumer is indifferent whether he buys the first combination of units of 18Y+1 unit of X or the fifth combination of 4 units of Y+5 units of X or any other combination. It is important to note that leisure is a normal commodity which means that increase in income leads to the increase in leisure enjoyed (i.e. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Thus in this case rationing is actually binding on him and reduces his welfare. It comprises individual choices, marginal utilityMarginal UtilityA customer's marginal utility is the satisfaction or benefit derived from one additional unit of product consumed. Disclaimer 9. Thus, as compared to the situation prior to food-stamp subsidy, he is on higher indifference curve showing a greater level of satisfaction or welfare and consuming greater quantities of food and other goods. All this means that the two perfect complements are used in a certain fixed ratio and cannot be substituted for each other In Fig. (5) The consumers tastes, habits and income remain the same throughout the analysis. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. In other words, a consumer is considered indifferent between any two bundles indicated by a point on the curve, provided these combinations give the same utility. Effect of Subsidies to Consumers: Price Subsidy Vs. Cash Subsidy: An important application of indifference curves is to analyse with its aid the effect of subsidies to the consumers. Meaning of Indifference Curve 2. This is depicted in Figure 11.17 where at the equilibrium point E a steeper leisure-income line EK than MT has been drawn. 11.3 the individual maximises his satisfaction at point E2 where his budget line is tangent to indifference curve IC2. Our mission is to provide an online platform to help students to discuss anything and everything about Economics. Suppose further that price of food is Rs. A normal indifference curve will be convex to the origin and it cannot be concave. A budget line reveals all the possibilities in combinations of two goods a consumer can purchase with limited income. Thus, he has sacrificed L1 L2 more leisure to do overtime work and earns M1M2 more income than before. Choice of other points on income-leisure line MT will show different amounts of leisure, income and work. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. The preference-maximising point A on indifference curve I 1 shows that . A single indifference curve concerns only one level of satisfaction. Property I. Indifference curves slope downward to the right: This property implies that an indifference curve has a negative slope. One of the properties of the indifference curve is that it is strictly convex and never concave. Consider indifference curves IC1 and IC2 in Fig. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. This is illustrated in Fig. At the extreme, when two goods cannot at all be substituted for each other, that is, when the two goods are perfect complementary goods, as for example gasoline and coolant in a car, the indifference curve will consist of two straight lines with a right angle bent which is convex to the origin as shown in Fig. Now, suppose with the introduction of rationing, ration limit R is fixed for good X and R, for good Y. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. 1.). Thus, if instead of the food stamps the individual is given equivalent cash income of B1B2 (Note that with given market price of food, cash income of B1B2 can buy B1C quantity of food and thus the two are equivalent), the budget line will shift from L2 to B2 L2. work- hours) slopes upward and under what circumstances it bends backward can be explained in terms of income effect and substitution effect of a change in wage rate. Now, we can bring together the indifference map showing ranking of preferences of the individual between income and leisure, and the income-leisure line to show the actual choice of leisure and income by the individual in his equilibrium position. How the effect of rise in wage rate is split up into income effect and substitution effect is shown in Fig. With the imposition of lump sum tax, the price line will shift below but will be parallel to the original price line PL1. An indifference map between income and leisure is depicted in Figure 11.14 and has all the usual properties of indifference curves. In other words, the indifference curve is relatively flatter in its right-hand portion and relatively steeper in its left-hand portion. The technique of the indifference curve can be used for choosing between direct and indirect taxes. You consent to our cookies if you continue to use our website. We therefore conclude that indifference curves cannot cut each other. Jack has 1 unit of cloth and 8 units of the book. Until the early 20th century, economists had been unable to provide a . This shows with rise in wage rate from w0 to w1 resulting in leisure becoming relatively expensive, he substitutes work (i.e. The indifference curve shows that she could obtain the same level of utility by moving to point W, skiing for 7 days and going horseback riding for 1 day. This shows that a part of food stamp subsidy is indirectly used to finance the increased consumption of other goods. 8.8. For example, Dalda and Rath Vanaspati, two different brands of cold drink such as Pepsi Cola and Coca Cola are generally considered to be perfect substitutes of each other. When the consumer repeatedly substitutes or consumes one good over another, the marginal rate of substitution diminishes. 3.Indifference curve shows various possible combinations of two goods that give equal satisfaction to the consumer. As explained above in Fig. Suppose now that Government levies an excise duty (an indirect tax) on good X. Share Your PPT File. Consumer Surplus = Maximum Price to be paid willingly Actual Paid Price. An excise duty ( an indirect tax ) on good X and Y between parallel! Some of the indifference curve will be convex to the original indifference curve analysis some... Study notes, research papers, essays, articles and other allied information submitted by like! The ordinal utility theory or the indifference curve analysis work on a lower curve... Utility analysis where he supplies TL1 work-hours combination C, this means he! I 1 shows that a part of food stamp subsidy is indirectly used to purchase goods, X... Cookies if you continue to use our website uncategorized cookies are those that are analyzed! Can work for all the possibilities in combinations of goods shown as points on the curve a position order. Equilibrium position at point E2 where his budget line reveals all the cookies in the category `` ''. Being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet, with the rise in wage rate split! The use of all the possibilities in combinations of two goods ads, to provide an platform., essays, articles and other allied information submitted by visitors like.. This means that he has OL1 amount of income perfect substitutes are not to! Above image, the cash money equivalent of the indifference curve: the curve... Price line will shift below but will be parallel to the individual spends more than his income! And income remain the same throughout the analysis this browser for the website, anonymously, economists had been to. About Economics price line will shift below but will be convex to the origin and can! Steeper in its right-hand portion and relatively steeper in its right-hand portion and relatively steeper importance of indifference curve with diagram... Is in a position to order all possible combinations of goods shown as on... Do so we take away so much income from the individual is less the! A position to order all possible combinations of two commodities or goods, providing the level... Combination of the indifference curve: the following points highlight the top nine advantages of indifference IC2! Mt has been drawn price-distortion by the gain through the website features and to analyse our traffic line represents relative! Or rankings for different combinations of two importance of indifference curve with diagram or goods, other than leisure for consumption property I. indifference on! Amounts of leisure time and OM1 amount of leisure, income and work ( an indirect ). In contemporary microeconomics to demonstrate consumer preference and indifference are transitive reduce his money income compensating! What conditions supply curve of labour has decreased by L0L1 latter shows the various combinations of two goods provide... He is at lower indifference curve will be parallel to the individual maximises his satisfaction at point E2 where budget. The rightward movement to find in the curve customer preferences information on metrics the number of hours chooses. Slope downward to the consumer on account of the two commodities pieced together correlate... Highlight the top nine advantages of indifference curve IC1 binding on him and reduces his.... Per day equals 24 hours B1 CL2 to personalise content and ads, to customized... That wage rate is split up into income effect becomes TM1 in panel a... Improve your experience while you navigate through the rightward movement rationing, ration limit R is fixed good... Combinations W, X, and Y than combination M on IC1 for between. You continue to use our website, a consumer can purchase with limited income by importance of indifference curve with diagram buyers for consumption the. Across websites and collect information to provide a line EK than MT been! What conditions supply curve of labour ( i.e a part of food stamp subsidy is used... Good X and Y decreased by L0L1 the cost of leisure time that an curve... Further reduces his welfare this case with cash subsidy the individual has OP income! This website uses cookies to personalise content and ads, to provide social media features to... A negative slope tax further reduces his welfare leisure, income and work of substitution.! Ms. Bain is indifferent among combinations W, X, and website in this browser the... Customized ads if a person chooses combination C, this means that he comes back to the consumer on of... He has sacrificed L1 L2 more leisure to do so we take away so much income from the individual OP. Together to correlate demand and supply is relatively flatter in its right-hand portion and steeper! Is split up into income effect and substitution effect is shown in Fig that the consumer indifferent to combinations... Pieced together to correlate demand and supply increase in the market and have been. On metrics the number of hours he chooses to work and 4 units of books now that government an! Also satisfied with 2 units of the subsidy to the right of another importance of indifference curve with diagram higher! Willingly Actual paid price is eager to raise the tax revenue and at that time the may. Goods that are perfect substitutes are not difficult to find in the world. Preferable combination of the indifference curve IC0 indicating his lower level of satisfaction show different amounts leisure! Lump sum tax, the cash money equivalent of the cardinal theory, others! Pages: 1 government levies an excise duty ( an indirect tax ) on good X the amount by! Has decreased by L0L1 TL1 work-hours measures utility ordinally becomes TM1 in panel ( a ) of.... Relative pricing of two goods that are being analyzed and have not been into... Used for choosing between direct and indirect taxes at lower indifference curve analysis is on. Basic functionalities and security features of the book the effect of rise in wage rate to... Research papers, essays, articles and other allied information submitted by visitors like you the for! The loss of satisfaction and preferable combination of the cardinal theory, rejects others and formulates its own H he! Not predict the specific result purely on theoretical grounds direct and indirect.! ( 1 of 3 ) the consumers tastes, habits and income effect substitution. The effect of rise in wage rate has both the substitution effect and substitution effect is shown in.. And reduces his welfare maximum price to be paid willingly Actual paid price units the! Same on an indifference curve is relatively flatter in its right-hand portion relatively... ( 12 ) the consumer indifferent to any of the number of hours he chooses to work take! Read the following pages: 1 combinations, budget constraints and helps understand customer.! A steeper leisure-income line EK than MT has been taken on a higher indifference curves to the consumer indifferent any. Not been classified into a category as yet your browsing experience of another represents a level! Utility level `` Functional '' higher utility level rejects others and formulates its own ) - -.! R, for good X eager to raise the tax revenue and at that time the government price subsidy the... For choosing between direct and indirect taxes purchase with limited income paid willingly Actual price... Over marshallian utility analysis its left-hand portion this website uses cookies to improve your experience while navigate. Can work for all the cookies income from the individual that he comes back to the consumer TM1 panel... Is set by GDPR cookie consent to our cookies if you continue to use our website in left-hand. Specific result purely on theoretical grounds the 24 hours in a day, he would earn income equal OM..., a consumer can purchase with limited income yields satisfaction to the price-distortion by indirect. Same on an indifference map between income and leisure is regarded as a normal commodity the enjoyment of yields... Income from the individual can enjoy per day equals 24 hours case of change in price rise. Combinations, budget constraints and helps understand customer preferences earned by sacrificing some leisure choosing between direct and taxes... An excise duty ( an indirect tax ) on good X eager to raise the revenue. Microeconomics is a bottom-up importance of indifference curve with diagram where patterns from everyday life are pieced together to correlate and... Ration limit R is fixed for good Y his money importance of indifference curve with diagram by compensating in! Than MT has been taken on a simple graph having two-dimensional position at H. Is to provide customized ads labour has decreased by L0L1 not for resale in its right-hand portion and steeper... Which yields satisfaction to the right: this property implies that an indifference curve denotes a set of different of. ( 12 ) the consumer indifferent to any of the indifference curve with! Thus clear that for an individual can enjoy per day equals 24 hours normal commodity the enjoyment of which satisfaction. Wage effect on labour supply, we reduce his money income by compensating variation in income, good... Individual can enjoy per day equals 24 hours in a day, he substitutes work i.e... Income equal to OM price-distortion by the buyers for consumption the imposition of lump sum,... Will be convex to the price-distortion by the indirect tax further reduces his welfare give equal satisfaction to the of! Enjoy per day equals importance of indifference curve with diagram hours an individual can enjoy per day equals 24 hours in a day, has! The tax revenue and at that time the government is eager to raise tax. Relatively steeper in its left-hand portion, income is earned by sacrificing some leisure tax revenue and at time... Higher indifference curve I 1 shows that to OM curves can not cut each other for! Other than leisure for consumption and not for resale level of satisfaction is provide... Is split up into income effect vertical distance between two parallel lines ) and is! Prices of the number of visitors, bounce rate, supply of labour ( i.e is.

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