the law of diminishing marginal productivity holds: when all inputs are variable. course hero

by Kayla Boehm 6 min read

What is the law of diminishing marginal productivity in economics?

The law of diminishing marginal productivity is an economic principle that states that while increasing one input and keeping other inputs at the same level may initially increase output, further increases in that input will have a limited effect, and eventually no effect or a negative effect, on output Marginal Product

What happens when marginal productivity declines?

Diminishing marginal productivity can potentially lead to a loss of profit after breaching a threshold. If diseconomies of scale occur, companies don’t see a cost improvement per unit at all with production increases.

Does the law of diminishing marginal returns imply negative returns?

The law does not imply that the additional unit decreases total production, which is known as negative returns; however, this is commonly the result. The law of diminishing marginal returns does not imply that the additional unit decreases total production, but this is usually the result.

What happens to the marginal product as labor input increases?

As labor input increases, the marginal product also increases before a number of workers, L = 9. This is the stage of increasing returns. The marginal product produced by the 11 th unit of labor is less than the 10 th This begins the stage of diminishing returns.

What Is the Law of Diminishing Marginal Returns?

The law of diminishing marginal returns is a theory in economics that predicts that after some optimal level of capacity is reached, adding an additional factor of production will actually result in smaller increases in output.

What is the difference between a diminishing marginal return and a return to scale?

Diminishing marginal returns are an effect of increasing input in the short-run, while at least one production variable is kept constant, such as labor or capital. Returns to scale, on the other hand, are an impact of increasing input in all variables of production in the long run. This phenomenon is referred to as economies of scale.

Why do Neoclassical economists postulate that each “unit” of labor is exactly the same?

Neoclassical economists postulate that each “unit” of labor is exactly the same, and diminishing returns are caused by a disruption of the entire production process as extra units of labor are added to a set amount of capital.

What is an example of decreasing returns to scale?

For example, suppose that there is a manufacturer that is able to double its total input, but gets only a 60% increase in total output; this is an example of decreasing returns to scale. Now, if the same manufacturer ends up doubling its total output, then it has achieved constant returns to scale, where the increase in output is proportional to the increase in production input. However, economies of scale will occur when the percentage increase in output is higher than the percentage increase in input (so that by doubling inputs, output triples).

Who first proposed the law of diminishing returns?

History of The Law of Diminishing Returns. The idea of diminishing returns has ties to some of the world’s earliest economists, including Jacques Turgot, Johann Heinrich von Thünen, Thomas Robert Malthus, David Ricardo, and James Anderson. 1  2  The first recorded mention of diminishing returns came from Turgot in the mid-1700s. 3 .

Does the addition of any larger amounts of a factor of production yield decreased per unit incremental returns?

After some optimal level of capacity utilization, the addition of any larger amounts of a factor of production will inevitably yield decreased per-unit incremental returns.

Who was the first to demonstrate how additional labor and capital added to a fixed piece of land would successively generate smaller?

Classical economists, such as Ricardo and Malthus, attribute successive diminishment of output to a decrease in the quality of input. Ricardo contributed to the development of the law, referring to it as the "intensive margin of cultivation." 4  5  Ricardo was also the first to demonstrate how additional labor and capital added to a fixed piece of land would successively generate smaller output increases. 6 

What is the law of diminishing returns?

Law of diminishing returns states that an additional amount of a single factor of production will result in a decreasing marginal output of production. The law assumes other factors to be constant. What this means is that if X produces Y, there will be a point when adding more quantities of X will not help in a marginal increase in quantities of Y.

What happens to marginal product as labor input increases?

As labor input increases, the marginal product also increases before a number of workers, L = 9. This is the stage of increasing returns.

How many workers can a factory employ to keep the marginal product at a rising rate?

Clearly, the marginal product enters the stage of negative returns from here. The factory can employ 9 workers to keep the marginal product at a rising rate. However, it can add as many as 19 workers before noting a fall in the total product.

How many laborers should a farmer have on his field?

Hence, the farmer should optimize his wheat output with 3 laborers on his field.

How many components are there in the law of diminishing returns?

From the definition of the law of diminishing returns, there are three components.

Why should input and process be held independent of technological aspects?

The input and the process (es) should be held independent of technological aspects as technology can play its part in improving efficiencies in production.

Does the total product decrease before the 20th worker?

The total product i.e. quantity of Q does not decrease before the 20 th worker is employed. Clearly, the marginal product enters the stage of negative returns from here.

What is the law of diminishing marginal productivity?

The law of diminishing marginal productivity is an economic principle that states that while increasing one input and keeping other inputs at the same level may initially increase output, further increases in that input will have a limited effect, and eventually no effect or a negative effect, on output

What is the relationship between marginal product and average product?

Relationship between Marginal Product and Average Product. Marginal product is the increase in total product as a result of adding one more unit of input.(textbook definition.) Average product is the total product (or total output) divided by the quantity of inputs used to produce that total.

What is the quantity of output that equates marginal revenue?

A perfectly competitive firm produces the quantity of output that equates marginal revenue, which is equal to price, and marginal cost, as long as price exceeds average variable cost. The profit-maximizing choices of output at alternative prices generates the perfectly competitive firm's short-run supply curve.

What does the long-run equality of price and marginal cost mean?

Explain: the long-run equality of price and marginal cost implies that resources will be allocated efficiently.

What is marginal cost?

Marginal cost represents the total cost to produce one additional unit of product or output. Marginal product is the extra output generated by one additional unit of input, such as an additional worker

What is Economics Ch.24?

Economics Ch.24: Measuring the Cost of Living

What is shutdown point?

A shutdown point is a point of operations where a company experiences no benefit for continuing operations or from shutting down temporarily; it is the combination of output and price where the company earns just enough revenue to cover its total variable costs.

Understanding The Law of Diminishing Marginal Productivity

  • The law of diminishing marginal productivity involves marginal increases in production return per unit produced. It can also be known as the law of diminishing marginal product or the law of diminishing marginal return. In general, it aligns with most economic theories using marginal an…
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Real-World Examples

  • In its most simplified form, diminishing marginal productivity is typically identified when a single input variable presents a decrease in input cost. A decrease in the labor costs involved with manufacturing a car, for example, would lead to marginal improvements in profitability per car. However, the law of diminishing marginal productivity suggests that for every unit of production…
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Considerations For Economies of Scale

  • Economies of scale can be studied in conjunction with the law of diminishing marginal productivity. Economies of scale show that a company can usually increase their profit per unit of production when they produce goods in mass quantities. Mass production involves several important factors of production like labor, electricity, equipment usage, and more. When these fa…
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What Is The Law of Diminishing Marginal Returns?

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The law of diminishing marginal returns is a theory in economics that predicts that after some optimal level of capacity is reached, adding an additional factor of production will actually result in smaller increases in output. For example, a factory employs workers to manufacture its products, and, at some point, the company o…
See more on investopedia.com

Understanding The Law of Diminishing Marginal Returns

  • The law of diminishing marginal returns is also referred to as the "law of diminishing returns," the "principle of diminishing marginal productivity," and the "law of variable proportions." This law affirms that the addition of a larger amount of one factor of production, ceteris paribus, inevitably yields decreased per-unit incremental returns. Th...
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History of The Law of Diminishing Returns

  • The idea of diminishing returns has ties to some of the world’s earliest economists, including Jacques Turgot, Johann Heinrich von Thünen, Thomas Robert Malthus, David Ricardo, and James Anderson. The first recorded mention of diminishing returns came from Turgot in the mid-1700s.1 Classical economists, such as Ricardo and Malthus, attribute successive diminishment of outpu…
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Diminishing Marginal Returns vs. Returns to Scale

  • Diminishing marginal returns are an effect of increasing input in the short-run, while at least one production variable is kept constant, such as labor or capital. Returns to scale, on the other hand, are an impact of increasing input in all variables of production in the long run. This phenomenon is referred to as economies of scale. For example, suppose that there is a manufacturer that is abl…
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Components of The Law of Diminishing Returns

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There are three components from the definition of the law of diminishing returns. You are free to use this image on your website, templates etc, Please provide us with an attribution linkHow to Provide Attribution?Article Link to be Hyperlinked For eg: Source: Law of Diminishing Returns(wallstreetmojo.com) 1. The Factor of Pro…
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Assumptions of Law of Diminishing Marginal Returns

  1. The law is used mostly by considering a short-run production scenario. That is because the principle lies in keeping all other factors of productionconstant, except the one used to correlate with o...
  2. The input and the process(es) should be held independent of technological aspects as technology can play its part in improving production efficiencies.
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Advantages of The Law of Diminishing Returns

  1. The law of diminishing returns helps management maximize labor (as in examples 1 and 2 above) and other factors of production to an optimum level.
  2. This theory also helps increase production efficiency by minimizing costs, as evident from the wheat farmer’s case.
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Limitations of Law of Diminishing Returns

  1. Although useful in production activities, we cannot apply this law in all forms of production. The constraint comes when the factors of production are less natural. Hence, a universal application i...
  2. The law assumes that all units of a single factor of production must be identical. It is, however, not practical usually and becomes a hurdle in an application. In our above examples, labor be…
  1. Although useful in production activities, we cannot apply this law in all forms of production. The constraint comes when the factors of production are less natural. Hence, a universal application i...
  2. The law assumes that all units of a single factor of production must be identical. It is, however, not practical usually and becomes a hurdle in an application. In our above examples, labor becomes...

Conclusion

  • The law of diminishing returns is a useful concept in production theory. The law can be categorized into increasing returns, diminishing returns, and negative returns. The production industry, particularly the agriculture sector, finds the immense application of this law. Producers question where to operate on the graph of the marginal product as the first stage describes und…
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Recommended Articles

  • This article is a guide to the law of diminishing returns definition. Here, we discuss the law of diminishing marginal returns examples through diagrams, advantages, and limitations. You can learn more about Economics from the following articles: – 1. Embargo 2. Okun’s Law Definition 3. Blue Sky Laws Meaning 4. What is the Law of Diminishing Marginal Utility? 5. Formula of Margin…
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