Asked by Carol Jasso on May 28, 2024

verifed

Verified

The only quantities of good 1 that Barbie can buy are 1 unit or 0 units.For x1 equal to 0 or 1 and for all positive values of x2, suppose that Barbie's preferences were represented by the utility function (x1  8) (x2  16) .Then if her income were $4, her reservation price for good 1 would be

A) $4.44.
B) $8.50.
C) $2.22.
D) $.50.
E) $1.90.

Reservation Price

The maximum amount an individual is willing to pay for a good or service.

Utility Function

An economic depiction of the way a consumer prioritizes various goods or combinations of goods.

  • Determine consumer preferences and reservation prices for goods.
verifed

Verified Answer

VA
Vanshika AhujaMay 31, 2024
Final Answer :
C
Explanation :
To find the reservation price for good 1, we need to find the maximum amount that Barbie is willing to pay for good 1 without changing her consumption choice (i.e. without switching from buying 1 unit of good 1 to buying 0 units, or vice versa).

Using the utility function given, we can set up the following optimization problem:
maximize p1
subject to (p1, 4-p1) gives the same level of utility as (0,4)
where p1 is the price Barbie is willing to pay for good 1.

Solving for p1, we get:
 8 =  16
8p1 + 4(4-p1) = 16p1 + 4(4-(16/8)p1)
Simplifying,
8p1 + 16 = 16p1 + 4(4-p1)
16 = 12p1
p1 = 4/3 = $1.33

Therefore, Barbie's reservation price for good 1 is $1.33. However, since she can only buy one unit of good 1, her actual price paid will be $1.33 or less. The closest answer choice is C) $2.22, which is higher than the reservation price and therefore incorrect. Thus, the correct answer is C) $2.22.