Social Sciences and History / Unit 14 SSH 1323 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Substitution Bias and Quality Bias
Captions available
The idea
A fixed basket has two problems. Substitution bias: it overstates the rise in the cost of living because buyers substitute away from goods whose prices rise. Quality and new-goods bias: it overstates too, ignoring better quality and new goods. Both can be reduced, neither eliminated.
In practice
A basket still counting a decade-old phone.
Where people slip
Both push measured inflation too high.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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