Commerce Exam  >  Commerce Questions  >  Can marginal utility ever be negative ? Illus... Start Learning for Free
Can marginal utility ever be negative ? Illustrate your answer using a table and a diagram. Please answer this question asap.?
Most Upvoted Answer
Can marginal utility ever be negative ? Illustrate your answer using a...
Yes. if we use standard unit of any commodity continuously one situation is come when TU curve start declining and MU is inegative
Community Answer
Can marginal utility ever be negative ? Illustrate your answer using a...
Yes, marginal utility can be negative in certain situations.

Factors affecting marginal utility
There are several factors that can affect the marginal utility of a good or service, including:

- Quantity: As the quantity of a good or service consumed increases, the marginal utility typically decreases.
- Satiation: Eventually, a consumer may become satiated with a good or service, causing the marginal utility to become negative.
- Substitution: If a consumer has access to a substitute for a good or service, the marginal utility may decrease or become negative.
- Complementarity: Conversely, if a good or service is complementary to another good or service, the marginal utility may increase.

Table and diagram
To illustrate the concept of negative marginal utility, consider the following table and diagram.

Quantity of Pizza Consumed | Total Utility | Marginal Utility
--- | --- | ---
0 | 0 | -
1 | 10 | 10
2 | 18 | 8
3 | 24 | 6
4 | 28 | 4
5 | 30 | 2
6 | 30 | 0
7 | 28 | -2

In this example, a consumer is eating pizza. As the consumer eats more pizza, the total utility increases, but the marginal utility decreases. By the time the consumer reaches the seventh slice of pizza, the marginal utility has become negative, meaning that the consumer is actually less satisfied with each additional slice of pizza.

The diagram below shows this relationship graphically:

![Marginal Utility Diagram](https://cdn1.edurev.in/serve/5e/1650x0w/5e9f20c1-4ed7-4a9f-88e9-8dce5c3f6a5c.png)

As the quantity of pizza consumed increases, the marginal utility curve slopes downward. At some point, the marginal utility becomes negative, indicating that each additional unit of pizza is actually decreasing the consumer's satisfaction.

Conclusion
In conclusion, marginal utility can indeed be negative. This occurs when a consumer reaches a point of satiation or has access to a substitute for a good or service. The concept of negative marginal utility is important for understanding consumer behavior and demand.
Attention Commerce Students!
To make sure you are not studying endlessly, EduRev has designed Commerce study material, with Structured Courses, Videos, & Test Series. Plus get personalized analysis, doubt solving and improvement plans to achieve a great score in Commerce.
Explore Courses for Commerce exam

Top Courses for Commerce

Can marginal utility ever be negative ? Illustrate your answer using a table and a diagram. Please answer this question asap.?
Question Description
Can marginal utility ever be negative ? Illustrate your answer using a table and a diagram. Please answer this question asap.? for Commerce 2024 is part of Commerce preparation. The Question and answers have been prepared according to the Commerce exam syllabus. Information about Can marginal utility ever be negative ? Illustrate your answer using a table and a diagram. Please answer this question asap.? covers all topics & solutions for Commerce 2024 Exam. Find important definitions, questions, meanings, examples, exercises and tests below for Can marginal utility ever be negative ? Illustrate your answer using a table and a diagram. Please answer this question asap.?.
Solutions for Can marginal utility ever be negative ? Illustrate your answer using a table and a diagram. Please answer this question asap.? in English & in Hindi are available as part of our courses for Commerce. Download more important topics, notes, lectures and mock test series for Commerce Exam by signing up for free.
Here you can find the meaning of Can marginal utility ever be negative ? Illustrate your answer using a table and a diagram. Please answer this question asap.? defined & explained in the simplest way possible. Besides giving the explanation of Can marginal utility ever be negative ? Illustrate your answer using a table and a diagram. Please answer this question asap.?, a detailed solution for Can marginal utility ever be negative ? Illustrate your answer using a table and a diagram. Please answer this question asap.? has been provided alongside types of Can marginal utility ever be negative ? Illustrate your answer using a table and a diagram. Please answer this question asap.? theory, EduRev gives you an ample number of questions to practice Can marginal utility ever be negative ? Illustrate your answer using a table and a diagram. Please answer this question asap.? tests, examples and also practice Commerce tests.
Explore Courses for Commerce exam

Top Courses for Commerce

Explore Courses
Signup for Free!
Signup to see your scores go up within 7 days! Learn & Practice with 1000+ FREE Notes, Videos & Tests.
10M+ students study on EduRev