17 · Products

R&D&I stands for Research, Development and Innovation. Technological progress makes products more varied and efficient.

‘PROS & CONS’ – Discuss in pairs and afterwards make a decision together.

Did you know that…?

Wants: People’s needs are usually the same, but depending on where we live and how much money we have, we choose to buy different products… Can you think of any traditional Aragonese dishes that are not well known outside the region? And can you think of a foreign recipe that is not well known here
Advertising: Although adverts have an informative function, introducing us to new products, they are often used to make a lasting impression on our minds… What are the latest adverts you have seen on your mobile? Were they trying to persuade you to buy something?

Listen

People turn needs into WANTS when they become convinced that they need to buy a product. We usually distinguish between two types of products:

GOODS: These are physical objects with a shape, size, weight and so on. Some are NON-DURABLE because they are used up as they are consumed, such as an apple. Others are DURABLE and can be used for quite a long time without losing much of their quality, such as a comb.
SERVICES: These are activities that we receive and that provide us with some benefit, without this benefit depending on a physical object. For example, when we take our bicycle to a repair shop to have the chain put back in place or to raise the handlebars and saddle, no new object is actually added. However, when we leave, we feel more satisfied than when our bicycle was not working properly.

GOODS AND SERVICES are everything that satisfies human needs. Goods are tangible and can be measured and accumulated. Services are intangible and therefore impossible to store or provide in exactly the same way every time.

Most of the products we use have been bought in the market in exchange for a price. However, we can reconsider some of these purchases and achieve the same SATISFACTION WITHOUT SPENDING MONEY, for example:

Using NATURAL GOODS that we find freely available, such as climbing a tree;
Through OUR OWN ACTIONS, such as designing clothes from fabric scraps or second-hand garments;
With OTHER PEOPLE’S CO-OPERATION, such as borrowing or exchanging items.

There are ALTERNATIVES to buying new goods that are more sustainable and efficient, such as self-production, shared ownership and exchanging goods.

Watch

BOTTLED WATER AND TAP WATER ARE PERCEIVED AS DIFFERENT PRODUCTS

TYPES OF PRODUCTS

Interact

Thinking about the greatest pleasures in the world

< The truly important things cannot be bought or sold, can they? We think about how wealthy people use their money to meet their needs. What could they buy to achieve complete satisfaction in the following areas? Would they achieve the happiness they are looking for? >

1. Health

2. Family

3. Friendship

4. Love

5. Recognition and admiration from others

< Wealthy people’s carbon footprints are enormous, which means that their excessive and out-of-control lifestyles are harming the rest of society. If an environmental law were created to define a “crime against nature”, these people would be forced to reduce their consumption drastically to reasonable levels. >

Assessment criterion

6.4. Critically assess the economic problem of scarce resources and the need to make choices, as well as the principles of social interaction from an economic perspective, applying this knowledge to deal effectively with challenges.