This study guide prepares you for the Final Examination you complete in the last week of the course. It contains practice questions, which are related to each week’s objectives. Highlight the correct response, and then refer to the answer key at the end of this Study Guide to check your answers.
Use each week’s questions as a self-test at the start of a new week to reflect on the previous week’s concepts. When you come across concepts that you are unfamiliar with, refer to the Student Guide for that particular week.
Week One: Fundamentals of Macroeconomics
Objective: Explain the economic interaction of resources among households, government, and businesses.
1. Which group has ultimate control over the U.S. economy? a. Business b. Households c. Multinationals d. Government
2. When a government intervenes in an economy in a way that influences the relationship between households and businesses, it is a. serving as an economic actor b. serving as an economic referee c. serving the public good d. reducing social welfare by interfering with the invisible hand
Objective: Describe gross domestic product, inflation rate, unemployment rate, and interest rate.
3. Per capita real output would most likely increase if a. both real GDP and population increase b. both real GDP and population decrease c. real GDP increases and population decreases d. real GDP decreases and population increases
4. In 2006, U.S. real GDP increased by 3.3 percent. Based on this information, we can infer that the U.S. experienced a. a recession in 2006 b. an expansion in 2006 c. a depression in 2006 d. a trough in 2006
Objective: Identify sources of historical economic data and economic forecasts.
5. The Bureau of Economic Analysis is responsible for which of the following? a. Setting interest rates b.