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Social Studies 9

Social Studies 9 · Worksheets

Market and mixed economies

Ten questions of mixed difficulty, covering Economies. Print it, or work through it on screen — the answer key starts on its own page.

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Market and mixed economies

Social Studies 9 · maddyhelps.com

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Circle the best answer for each question. Use the space to note the reasoning or the source detail that decided it.

  1. A headline: "Grocery workers' union wins 4% raise over two years after members vote to authorize a strike." Which conclusion about labour unions does this source best support?

    1. a) Unions set the wages of every worker in the province by law
    2. b) Unions are run by the government in a mixed economy
    3. c) A strike vote means the workers have already stopped work
    4. d) Workers bargaining together can win terms one alone could not

  2. Maya has $60 from babysitting. She can buy a concert ticket or a pair of running shoes, but not both. She chooses the ticket. What is the opportunity cost of her choice?

    1. a) The running shoes she gave up
    2. b) The hours she spent babysitting
    3. c) The concert ticket she bought
    4. d) The $60 she paid for the ticket

  3. A table compares doctor and hospital care. Canada: covered by public health insurance in every province. United States: mostly private insurance, with public programs for people 65 and older and for some people with low incomes. Which conclusion does the table best support?

    1. a) Canadians pay nothing at all for their health care
    2. b) Canada's government has a bigger role in health care
    3. c) Both countries run the same kind of health system
    4. d) The United States has no public health insurance at all

  4. What is a Crown corporation?

    1. a) A charity that receives grants from the government
    2. b) A business owned by a federal or provincial government
    3. c) A private company that sells mostly to the government
    4. d) A business owned by the royal family

  5. Scarcity, the basic economic problem, means that

    1. a) some goods are rare, so they cost more than others
    2. b) a country has used up one of its natural resources
    3. c) wants are unlimited but resources are limited
    4. d) governments print too little money for people's needs

  6. A headline: "Spring frost wipes out much of the Okanagan cherry crop; demand expected to stay strong." In a market economy, what will most likely happen to the price of cherries?

    1. a) It will fall, because fewer cherries are for sale in stores
    2. b) It will stay the same, because demand has not changed
    3. c) It will be set by the government until the next crop
    4. d) It will rise, because supply fell while demand held steady

  7. A business report: "After months of customer requests, an Edmonton burger chain added three plant-based burgers to its menu." Which market principle does this show?

    1. a) Consumer sovereignty
    2. b) Government regulation
    3. c) Public ownership
    4. d) Collective bargaining

  8. A diagram shows a line with "Command economy" at one end and "Market economy" at the other. Country X has public health care, several Crown corporations and mostly private businesses. Where does Country X belong on the line?

    1. a) Off the line, since it has both public and private parts
    2. b) At the command end, because it has Crown corporations
    3. c) At the market end, because most businesses are private
    4. d) Between the two ends, as a mixed economy

  9. Every economic system must answer three basic questions. What are they?

    1. a) What to produce, how to produce it, and for whom
    2. b) What to tax, what to spend, and what to save
    3. c) Who votes, who governs, and who judges the law
    4. d) What to buy, where to buy it, and when to buy it

  10. A small-business owner in Red Deer: "When the other hardware store in town closed, the big chain store raised its prices. Competition was the only thing keeping prices fair." Which government action would this speaker most likely support?

    1. a) Replacing private stores with Crown corporations
    2. b) Laws that protect competition between businesses
    3. c) The government setting the price of every item
    4. d) Removing all government rules on how businesses act

Answer key · Market and mixed economies

Social Studies 9 · maddyhelps.com

  1. d) Workers bargaining together can win terms one alone could not — Collective bargaining gives workers more power than negotiating one at a time, and a strike vote adds pressure without anyone walking out. A strike vote only authorizes a strike; the headline shows a deal was reached.
  2. a) The running shoes she gave up — Opportunity cost is the next-best choice given up, not the money spent. The $60 is the price; the shoes are what the choice really cost her.
  3. b) Canada's government has a bigger role in health care — Both countries mix public and private, but public insurance covers doctor and hospital care for everyone in Canada, while in the United States it mainly covers older and low-income people through Medicare and Medicaid. "Canadians pay nothing" ignores that taxes fund the system.
  4. b) A business owned by a federal or provincial government — "Crown" means the state, not the royal family: Canada Post and the CBC are federal Crown corporations, and ATB Financial is owned by the Province of Alberta. Governments create them where they decide a service should be publicly owned.
  5. c) wants are unlimited but resources are limited — Every society faces scarcity, rich or poor, because wants always outrun resources, so choices must be made. Rarity is a narrower idea; scarcity applies even to ordinary things such as time, land and workers.
  6. d) It will rise, because supply fell while demand held steady — With fewer cherries and the same number of buyers, buyers compete for what is left and the price rises. "Demand has not changed" is true, but price depends on supply and demand together.
  7. a) Consumer sovereignty — Consumer sovereignty means buyers' choices steer what businesses produce. The chain changed its menu to win sales, not because a government, a Crown corporation or a union required it.
  8. d) Between the two ends, as a mixed economy — Real economies sit between the ends, mixing private business with some public ownership and social programs. Having Crown corporations does not make an economy command-based, and having mostly private firms does not make it a pure market.
  9. a) What to produce, how to produce it, and for whom — Scarcity forces every economy to decide what gets made, how it gets made and who gets it. A market answers through prices and individual choices, a command economy through government plans; the questions stay the same, only the answers differ.
  10. b) Laws that protect competition between businesses — The speaker values competition, and competition laws exist to protect it, for example by reviewing mergers and banning price-fixing. Removing every rule sounds pro-market, but it would do nothing to restore competition once one seller dominates.