In the context of scarcity and choice, what does it mean if you are wasting resources that would be better spent elsewhere?

• A. You are achieving allocative efficiency.
• B. You are maximizing utility.
• C. You are experiencing opportunity cost.
• D. You are operating on the production possibilities frontier.

Answer: (C)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Step 1: Understand the concept of scarcity and choice. Scarcity means that resources are limited, so choosing to use resources in one way means giving up the opportunity to use them in another way.
2. Step 2: Define opportunity cost. Opportunity cost is the value of the next best alternative that you give up when making a choice. It represents the cost of foregone opportunities.
3. Step 3: Analyze what it means to waste resources that could be better spent elsewhere. This implies that the resources are not being used in their most valuable or efficient way, so you are giving up the benefits you could have gained from the alternative use.
4. Step 4: Connect this idea to opportunity cost. Wasting resources means you are incurring an opportunity cost because you are losing the potential benefits from the better alternative use of those resources.
5. Step 5: Differentiate from other terms: Allocative efficiency means resources are used where they are most valued; maximizing utility means achieving the highest satisfaction; operating on the production possibilities frontier means producing at maximum efficiency. Wasting resources contradicts these concepts and aligns with experiencing opportunity cost.