A consumer’s preferences are monotonic. Which of the following statements are correct?
(A) She prefers the bundle (10, 10) to the bundle (10, 9).
(B) She prefers the bundle (9, 9) to the bundle (10, 9).
(C) She can be indifferent between the bundles (10, 8) and (8, 6).
(D) She prefers the bundle (12, 4) to the bundle (11, 4).
(E) Her indifference curves slope downward.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → (A), (D) and (E) only
Under monotonic preferences, a bundle with more of at least one good and no less of the other is preferred.
(A) She prefers the bundle (10, 10) to the bundle (10, 9). — Correct. (10, 10) has one more of the second good and the same first good.
(B) She prefers the bundle (9, 9) to the bundle (10, 9). — Incorrect. (10, 9) has more of the first good and the same second good, so (10, 9) is preferred.
(C) She can be indifferent between the bundles (10, 8) and (8, 6). — Incorrect. (10, 8) has more of both goods, so she must prefer it.
(D) She prefers the bundle (12, 4) to the bundle (11, 4). — Correct. (12, 4) has more of the first good and the same second good.
(E) Her indifference curves slope downward. — Correct. More of one good must be balanced by less of the other to keep her indifferent.
NCERT (2026-27): “Monotonic Preferences Consumer’s preferences are assumed to be such that between any two bundles (x1, x2) and (y1, y2), if (x1, x2) has more of at least one of the goods and no less of the other good compared to (y1, y2), then the consumer prefers (x1, x2) to (y1, y2). Preferences of this kind are called monotonic preferences. …” “Summary Monotonicity of preferences implies that the indifference curve is downward sloping.” |