Production and Growth
Multiple Choice – Section 00: Introduction
1. The average income in a rich country, such as the United States or Japan, is more than
a. 3 times, but less than 5 times, the average income in a poor country, such as Indonesia or
Nigeria.
b. 5 times, but less than 10 times, the average income in a poor country, such as Indonesia or
Nigeria.
c. 10 times, but less than 20 times, the average income in a poor country, such as Indonesia or
Nigeria.
d. more than 20 times the average income in a poor country, such as Indonesia or Nigeria.
2. The average income in a rich country
a. is about 5 times that in a poor country. Further, people in rich countries have longer life
expectancy.
b. is about 5 times that in a poor country. However, people in rich countries have about the same
life expectancy as those in poor countries.
c. is more than ten times that in a poor country. Further, people in rich countries have longer life
expectancy.
d. is more than ten times that in poor country. However, people in rich countries have about the
same life expectancy as those in poor countries.
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3. Which of the following are residents of rich countries likely to have in greater quantities, or better
quality, than residents of poor countries?
a. housing
b. healthcare
c. life expectancy
d. All of the above.
4. Over the past century in the United States, real GDP per person has grown, on average, by about
a. 1 percent per year.
b. 2 percent per year.
c. 3 percent per year.
d. 5 percent per year.
5. During the past century the average growth rate of U.S. real GDP per person implies that it
doubled, on average, about every
a. 100 years.
b. 70 years.
c. 35 years.
d. 25 years.
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6. Over the last century, U.S. real GDP per person grew at a rate of about
a. 2 percent per year, so that it is now 2 times as high as it was a century ago.
b. 2 percent per year, so that it is now 8 times as high as it was a century ago.
c. 4 percent per year, so that it is now 2 times as high as it was a century ago.
d. 4 percent per year, so that it is now 8 times as high as it was a century ago.
7. In some East Asian countries, average income, as measured by real GDP per person, has recently
grown at an average annual rate that implies output will double about every
a. 10 years.
b. 15 years.
c. 20 years.
d. 25 years.
8. A country experiencing a growth rate of 12% per year can go from being one of the poorest to one
of the richest in how many generations?
a. one
b. two
c. three
d. four
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9. A country experiencing a growth rate of 12% per year can go from being one of the poorest to one
of the richest in
a. one generation. In the last couple of decades China’s growth rate has been higher than 12%.
b. one generation. However, in the last couple of decades not even China’s growth rate has been
this high.
c. three generations. In the last couple of decades China’s growth rate has been higher than 12%.
d. three generations. However, in the last couple of decades not even China’s growth rate has been
this high.
10. In which of the following countries has economic growth been sufficiently high that income would
double every ten years?
a. India
b. Mexico
c. South Korea
d. Zimbabwe
11. In which of the following countries has economic growth been sufficiently high that income would
double every ten years?
a. Singapore
b. Nigeria
c. India
d. Indonesia
12. Average income has been stagnant for many years in
a. Western European counties.
b. some Asian countries like South Korea and Singapore.
c. some Sub-Saharan African countries.
d. All of the above are correct.
13. Which of the following is a good gauge of economic progress?
a. the level of real GDP per person, but not the growth rate of real GDP per person
b. the level of real GDP per person and the growth rate of real GDP per person
c. the growth rate of real GDP per person, but not the level of real GDP per person
d. neither the level nor the growth rate of real GDP per person
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14. In which of the following countries did real GDP per person fall by about 38% from 1991 to
2011?
a. India
b. Singapore
c. Zimbabwe
d. None of the above are correct.
15. Productivity is the amount of goods and services
a. an economy produces. It is not linked to a nation’s economic policies.
b. an economy produces. It is linked to a nation’s economic policies.
c. produced for each hour of a worker’s time. It is not linked to a nation’s economic policies.
d. produced for each hour of a worker’s time. It is linked to a nation’s economic policies.
16. A nation’s standard of living is determined by
a. the percentage of its GDP that is accounted for by government purchases.
b. the quantity of natural resources with which it is endowed.
c. the productivity of its workers.
d. factors and events that are beyond the nation’s control.
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Multiple Choice – Section 01: Economic Growth around the World
1. A nation‘s standard of living is best measured by its
a. real GDP.
b. real GDP per person.
c. nominal GDP.
d. nominal GDP per person.
2. Which of the following can be measured by the level of real GDP per person?
a. productivity and the standard of living
b. productivity but not the standard of living
c. the standard of living but not productivity
d. neither the standard of living nor productivity
3. The level of real GDP person
a. differs widely across countries, but the growth rate of real GDP per person is similar across
countries.
b. is very similar across countries, but the growth rate of real GDP per person differs widely
across countries.
c. and the growth rate of real GDP per person are similar across countries.
d. and the growth rate of real GDP per person vary widely across countries.
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4. As of 2010, using real GDP per person as a measure, we would classify
a. the United States and Mexico as advanced economies and Bangladesh as a middle-income
country.
b. Canada as an advanced economy, Mexico as a middle-income country, and Pakistan as a poor
country.
c. Japan and India as advanced economies and Mexico as a poor country.
d. Japan as an advanced economy, the United Kingdom as a middle-income country, and Argentina
as a poor country.
5. Measured in 2010 dollars, real GDP per person in the United States in 2010 was about 14 times
that in
a. China.
b. India.
c. Indonesia.
d. Pakistan.
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6. Which of the following statements is correct? In 2010,
a. real income per person in the U.S. was about 6 times that in China.
b. real income per person in China was more than 2 times that in India.
c. the typical resident of India had less real income than the typical resident of England in 1870.
d. All of the above are correct.
7. In 2010, real GDP per person in Bangladesh was
a. about 3 times as high as it was in the U.S. in 1870.
b. about twice as high as it was in the U.S. in 1870.
c. about the same as it was in the U.S. in 1870.
d. less than it was in the U.S. in 1870.
8. In 2010, the typical Bangladeshi had about
a. less than half the real income of a typical American a century ago.
b. about the same real income of a typical American a century ago.
c. 2 times as much real income as that of a typical American a century ago.
d. 4 times as much real income as that of a typical American a century ago.
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9. Measured in 2010 dollars, real GDP per person in the United States in 2010 was about
a. $37,000.
b. $47,000.
c. $57,000.
d. $67,000.
10. Which of the following countries had the highest level of real GDP per person in 2010?
a. Germany
b. Canada
c. United States
d. Japan
11. Which of the following countries had the lowest level of real GDP per person in 2010?
a. Bangladesh
b. Indonesia
c. Mexico
d. China
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12. Which of the following measures how the level of well-being in a country has changed over time?
a. level of nominal GDP per person.
b. growth rate of nominal GDP.
c. growth rate of real GDP.
d. growth rate of real GDP per person.
13. Which of the following is correct?
a. Countries with the highest growth rates over the last 120 years are the ones that had the
highest level of real GDP 120 years ago.
b. Most countries have had little fluctuation around their average growth rates during the past 120
years.
c. The ranking of countries by income changes little over time.
d. Even though Japan had a higher growth rate of real GDP per person than the U.S. over the last
120 years, it’s
level of real GDP per person is less than that of the U.S.
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14. Which of the following is not correct?
a. Across countries there are large differences in the average income per person. These
differences are reflected in large differences in the quality of life.
b. With a growth rate of about 2 percent per year, average income per person doubles about
every 60 years.
c. The ranking of countries by average income changes substantially over time.
d. In some countries real income per person has changed very little over many years.
15. Which of the following statements is correct?
a. In the late 1800s, real GDP per person was higher in the United Kingdom than in the United
States.
b. In 2010, real GDP per person was higher in the United Kingdom than in the United States.
c. The average annual growth rate of real GDP was higher in the United Kingdom than in the
United States between the late 1800s and 2010.
d. All of the above are correct.
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16. Countries that have lower levels of real GDP per person than the United States
a. tend to have growth rates that are higher than that of the United States.
b. tend to have growth rates that are about the same as that of the United States.
c. tend to have growth rates that are lower than that of the United States.
d. in some cases have growth rates that are higher than that of the United States and in other
cases lower than that of the United States.
17. Country A experienced a growth rate of real GDP per person of 2.5 percent per year throughout
the 1900’s. In view of other countries’ experiences during this time country A’s growth was
a. exceptionally high.
b. moderately high.
c. moderately low.
d. exceptionally low.
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18. Country A experienced a growth rate of real GDP per person of 0.5 percent per year throughout
the 1900’s. In view of other countries’ experiences, country A’s growth was
a. exceptionally high.
b. moderately high.
c. moderately low.
d. exceptionally low.
19. Countries that grew the fastest over the last 100 or so years had average growth rates of real
income per person of about
a. 1.5 percent per year.
b. 2.0 percent per year.
c. 2.5 percent per year.
d. 3.0 percent per year.
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20. Among the following countries, which one has the highest level of real GDP per person but the
lowest growth rate of real GDP per person over a very long period of time?
a. the United Kingdom
b. Mexico
c. Argentina
d. China
21. Which of the following nations experienced average rates of economic growth of less than 2
percent over the last 100 years or so?
a. Bangladesh
b. Pakistan
c. United Kingdom
d. All of the above are correct.
22. Which of the following nations experienced average rates of economic growth of a bit under 2%
over the last 100 years or so?
a. Mexico
b. Brazil
c. the United States
d. All of the above are correct.
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23. Over the period 1900-2010, which of the following countries experienced the highest average
annual growth rate of real GDP per person?
a. Brazil
b. China
c. India
d. Pakistan
24. Among the following countries, which one has the highest growth rate of real GDP per person
over about the last 100 years?
a. Argentina
b. Mexico
c. the United Kingdom
d. the United States
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25. Which of the following countries had the highest growth rate over about the last 100 years?
a. Japan
b. China
c. Germany
d. United States
26. Which country has had a higher growth rate than the US over about the last 120 years?
a. Argentina
b. Germany
c. the United Kingdom
d. None of the above is correct.
27. Which country has had a higher growth rate than the U.S. over about the last 120 years?
a. India
b. Mexico
c. United Kingdom
d. Pakistan
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28. Which list contains, in this order, a country whose real GDP per person grew faster and one
whose real GDP per person grew slower than real GDP per person in the U.S. over about the last
100 years?
a. Bangladesh, India
b. China, United Kingdom
c. Japan, Brazil
d. Pakistan, Mexico
29. Which of the following pairs of countries experienced approximately the same rate of growth of
real income per person over about the last 120 years?
a. Germany and Japan
b. Indonesia and Bangladesh
c. the United States and Argentina
d. Mexico and Pakistan
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30. Of the following countries, which grew most slowly, in terms of real GDP per person, over about
the last 120 years?
a. Brazil
b. Mexico
c. China
d. United States
31. Which of these countries’ growth rates of real GDP per person have exceeded the United States’
growth rate of real GDP per person over the last century?
a. Canada and China
b. China and India
c. Germany and India
d. Germany and Pakistan
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32. Which of the following is indicated by the data on real income per person for various countries
over the past 100 or so years?
a. If, in a relatively poor country, real income per person had grown by 3.5 percent per year for
the last 100 years, it would be a relatively rich country today.
b. Rich countries became richer and poor countries became poorer.
c. In the United States, real income per person today is about four times as high as it was 120
years ago.
d. All of the above are correct.
33. Japan is
a. an advanced economy, and over the past century its rate of economic growth has been higher
than that of the United States.
b. an advanced economy, and over the past century its rate of economic growth has been lower
than that of the United States.
c. a middle-income country, and over the past century its rate of economic growth has been higher
than that of the United States.
d. a middle-income country, and over the past century its rate of economic growth has been lower
than that of the United States.