Scarcity and Choice
Learn why economics exists and how choices follow scarcity.
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Economics Starts With Scarcity
Scarcity means resources (money, time, land, oil, workers) are limited while wants are unlimited.
Definition: economics studies how people, businesses and governments use limited resources to satisfy unlimited wants.
From Scarcity to Choice
Because resources are limited, we cannot have everything. Every decision is a choice: spend lunch money on snacks now or save it for tomorrow.
Example: A government with a limited budget chooses between building a hospital or a stadium. It cannot build both fully — it must choose.
Types of Resources
- Land — natural resources (farmland, oil, water)
- Labour — people's effort and skills
- Capital — machines, tools, buildings
- Entrepreneurship — ideas and risk-taking that combine the rest
Practice
Write one scarcity example from your own home (e.g., limited pocket money) and state the choice you made last weekend.
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Course contents
Introduction to Economics
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