Microeconomics primarily deals with which of the following aspects of the economy?

Introduction / Context:
Economics is often divided into microeconomics and macroeconomics. Microeconomics focuses on the behaviour of individual economic units such as consumers and firms, and on the functioning of individual markets. Macroeconomics, by contrast, looks at aggregates such as national income, total employment, and the general price level. This question asks which activities fall under the scope of microeconomics and checks whether the learner can distinguish micro level concerns from macro level concerns.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• Microeconomics studies individual decision making units such as households and firms.
• It examines how these units interact in specific markets to determine prices and quantities.
• It also considers how limited resources are allocated among competing uses in different sectors.
• The options separately mention behaviour of industrial decision makers, allocation of resources across goods and services, and price determination, as well as an option combining them.

Concept / Approach:
Microeconomics covers a broad set of topics that revolve around individual markets and decision makers. These include how consumers maximise satisfaction, how firms maximise profits, how prices and output are determined in different market structures, and how resources are allocated between competing uses. All three elements in options a, b, and c form part of microeconomic analysis. The option that restricts the field only to national income and overall price level, on the other hand, describes macroeconomics. Therefore, the correct answer is that microeconomics deals with all of the aspects listed in options a, b, and c.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Recall that microeconomics focuses on individual decision makers, such as consumers choosing between goods and firms deciding on output and pricing.Step 2: Recognise that the behaviour of industrial decision makers, such as managers deciding how much to produce and at what price, is a key concern in microeconomic theory.Step 3: Understand that resource allocation across products and industries depends on relative prices and costs and is analysed using microeconomic tools.Step 4: Identify that the determination of prices and quantities in specific markets is a central topic in microeconomics and is studied under theories of demand, supply, and market structure.Step 5: See that option d, which combines all these aspects, best captures the scope of microeconomics.Step 6: Note that national income and overall price level are macroeconomic aggregates and therefore not the exclusive focus of microeconomics.

Verification / Alternative check:
Standard textbooks define microeconomics as the branch of economics that studies the decisions of individuals and firms and how they interact in markets to determine prices and allocate resources. Chapters on consumer behaviour, theory of the firm, market competition, and factor pricing all fall under microeconomics. Separate chapters on national income, unemployment, and inflation are clearly labelled as macroeconomics. This confirms that the combined elements in options a, b, and c correctly describe the domain of microeconomics.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
If we selected only option a, we would ignore microeconomics concern with resource allocation and price determination. Choosing only option b or only option c would also leave out important parts of micro theory. Option e is incorrect because the study of total national income and overall price level belongs to macroeconomics, not microeconomics. Therefore, only the option that includes all three micro level aspects is fully correct.

Common Pitfalls:
Students sometimes think that microeconomics deals only with consumers and not with firms, or they believe that resource allocation is purely a macro level issue. Others may confuse the level of analysis, mixing national aggregates with individual markets. To avoid such mistakes, it is useful to remember that micro equals individual units and specific markets, while macro equals economy wide totals and averages.

Final Answer:
Microeconomics deals with the behaviour of individual decision makers, the allocation of resources, and the determination of prices of goods and services, that is, all of the above aspects together.