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Utility

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goods
thumb|Tangible medical goods stacked in a warehouse|alt=Cardboard boxes stacked in a warehouse
utility
In economics, utility is a measure of a certain person's satisfaction from a certain state of the world. Over time, the term has been used with at least two meanings.
marginal utility
change in satisfaction resulting from an increase or decrease in consumption of one unit of a good or service
indifference curve
microeconomic graph; connects points representing different quantities of 2 goods, points between which a consumer is indifferent: i.e. the consumer doesn't prefer one combination or bundle of goods over another combination on the same curve
use value
utility of consuming a good
preference
In psychology, economics and philosophy, preference is a technical term usually used in relation to choosing between alternatives. For example, someone prefers A over B if they would rather choose A than B. Preferences are central to decision theory because of this relation to behavior. Some methods such as Ordinal Priority Approach use preference relation for decision-making. As connative states, they are closely related to desires. The difference between the two is that desires are directed at one object while preferences concern a comparison between two alternatives, of which one is preferr
risk aversion
preference against risk, a common human behavior of attempting to lower uncertainty and avoid risk
Subjective theory of value
Economic theory proposed by Austrian scholar Carl Menger
Gossen's laws
Laws about marginal utility in economics
preference
concept in economics
intertemporal choice
the process by which people make decisions about what and how much to do at various points in time, when choices at one time influence the possibilities available at other points in time
multiple-criteria decision analysis
sub-discipline of operations research that explicitly evaluates multiple conflicting criteria in decision making
utility maximization problem
the fundamental optimization problem that economic agents face
cardinal utility
in contrast with ordinal utility, in economics
risk seeking
In economics, finance, and psychology, risk-seeking (also called risk-loving or risk preference) refers to a behavioral tendency to prefer uncertain options with potentially higher rewards over safer alternatives with lower expected value. In other words, risk-seeking individuals derive greater satisfaction or perceived utility from taking chances, even when the probable outcome may be less favorable. This is a big issue seen in stock trading, for example, in where people take the risk to either hold or sell their stocks depending on past market trends.
cost–utility analysis
form of financial analysis used to guide procurement decisions
ordinal utility
Preference ranking
reservation price
limit on the price of a good or a service
risk neutral
preference that is neither risk averse nor risk seeking, so a party with such risk neutral preference is indifferent between choices with equal expected payoffs even if one choice is riskier
von Neumann–Morgenstern utility theorem
theorem that a rational decision-maker has a utility function
Price-consumption curve
economic concept