Final answer:
Standards can emerge through market competition, consumer preferences, licensing, or government imposition. Barriers to entry may be government-enforced, like licenses and regulations, or natural, like trademarks or economies of scale. Comparing standards of living across countries involves considering healthcare, education, income inequality, life expectancy, and security.
Step-by-step explanation:
Standards in various domains can emerge through different processes such as market competition, where multiple businesses offer their technologies or protocols, and the market naturally selects a standard based on which is most widely adopted. Sometimes, standards are chosen by consumer voting, often informally, as consumers gravitate towards and continuously choose a particular standard. Companies can also purchase licenses for established standards, contributing to their prevalence and entrenchment. Additionally, standards may be imposed by government or regulatory agencies to ensure uniformity, safety, and compliance across industries.
Classifying barriers to entry reveals how certain obstacles can be imposed or naturally exist in markets. Government-enforced barriers include laws limiting taxicab licenses (a) and safety regulations for taxicab drivers (b). A non-government-enforced barrier could be the competitive advantage of owning a unique asset, like a spring with pure water (d), or an industry’s inherent economies of scale (e). Trademarks (c) represent a legal protection that does function as a barrier to entry for others. Pollution-control policies can be organized into command-and-control methods, like mandated car emissions improvements (b) or water quality standards (c), or market incentives such as taxes on carbon emissions (a) or the sale of emissions permits (d).
When it comes to comparing standards of living internationally, one can look beyond GDP to indicators such as access to healthcare, education levels, income equality, life expectancy, and personal security. These factors can provide a more nuanced view of a nation’s overall well-being and economic health.