Final answer:
Consumers maximize satisfaction through their consumption choices by seeking the highest level of utility and making tradeoffs between goods and services, considering the diminishing marginal utility.
Step-by-step explanation:
The consumer maximizes their satisfaction through their choice of consumption choices. In economic terms, this involves individuals seeking the highest level of utility or satisfaction from their consumption patterns. Individuals assess their own utility and attempt to achieve the greatest happiness by examining the tradeoffs between different goods and services. This involves a consideration of marginal utility, which suggests that while more consumption typically leads to higher total utility, the additional utility gained from consuming one more unit of a good tends to decrease, a concept known as diminishing marginal utility.
When making consumption decisions, people like José consider what will make them the happiest in relation to how much things cost. They think about buying a bit more of one item by giving up a little of something else, searching for the combination that provides the highest utility. Ultimately, through a step-by-step process and by making tradeoffs, consumers aim to select the combination of goods that will provide them with the greatest satisfaction.