Business Courses/
- AuthorNicolaas Ackermann
Nicolaas has four years of professional work experience - having worked in hospitality, journalism, and marketing. He has a BA in Communication studies from the North-West University and has completed his TEFL qualification. He also has six years of writing experience complementing his qualified competence.
View bio - InstructorBeth Hendricks
Beth holds a master's degree in integrated marketing communications, and has worked in journalism and marketing throughout her career.
View bio
Learn the economic activity definition and compare this to non-economic activity. Explore the different types and study examples of economic activities.Updated: 11/21/2023
Table of Contents
- What Is Economic Activity?
- Examples of Economic Activities
- Types of Economic Activities
- Lesson Summary
Frequently Asked Questions
What are five examples of economic activities?
One can broadly classify five distinct examples of economic activities. These activities are producing, supplying, buying, selling, and the consumption of goods and services.
What is economic activity and its types?
Economic activity defines the duties and tasks individuals do with the ultimate goal of acquiring wealth in some way. The different types of activities relate to business, professions, and employment.
Table of Contents
- What Is Economic Activity?
- Examples of Economic Activities
- Types of Economic Activities
- Lesson Summary
The economic activity definition pertains to the production, supply, buying, or selling of goods or services. The consumption of a good or service in itself is also considered an economic activity. These activities occur in a wide variety of ways, degrees, and complexities in society. The term is normally used in theory as an element that drives economies. This ties to the purpose of economic activity as a means of gaining wealth and generating revenue. Economic activity is the driving force behind the flow of goods and services in an economy. The physical distribution of things around an economy is another form of activity.
The primary purpose of economic activity is to satisfy the needs and desires of individuals. The activity is also characterized by how it's centered on the exchange of goods, services, and money. It's fair to say that we practice economic activity to ultimately stay alive and pursue secondary needs like belonging, esteem, and self-actualization. The concept of this activity also fits into the general economic dilemma of satisfying unlimited needs with limited resources. Humans always want or need something - specifically need. An example of this is how we constantly need food to stay alive, so we have a constant need. We satisfy this need by means of a series of economic activity that includes working (delivering a service, selling goods, etc.) and using income to buy food and consume the food for sustenance.
Economic activity varies in nature according to the three economic sectors namely, the primary, secondary, and tertiary sectors. Primary sector activities revolve around raw materials, whereas the secondary sector relates to production and refinery, and the tertiary sector is founded on services.
Economic Activities vs. Non-Economic Activities
Non-economic activity is the opposing component of economic activity. It is defined by the provision of goods and/or services without the exchange of something in return. This makes the main difference between the two, money. Economic activity normally involves the transfer of money and non-economic activity only involves the one-way transfer of a good or service. An example of non-economic activity is volunteering to tutor local children in English for no cost. Other examples are painting, singing, religious worship, and donating. Usually, non-economic activities are motivated by self-satisfaction or social obligation. In essence, we participate in economic activities to ultimately spend more time doing non-economic activities. It can generally be assumed that middle-to-lower class individuals' routines are comprised of majority economic activities, whereas upper-class individuals have more freedom to engage in non-economic activities. This is due to how middle-to-lower class individuals have to do economic activities more frequently in order to meet their needs.
 |
To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member.
Create your account
An error occurred trying to load this video.
Try refreshing the page, or contact customer support.
You must cCreate an account to continuewatching
Register to view this lesson
Are you a student or a teacher?
Create Your Account To Continue Watching
As a member, you'll also get unlimited access to over 88,000lessons in math, English, science, history, and more. Plus, get practice tests, quizzes, and personalized coaching to help yousucceed.
Get unlimited access to over 88,000 lessons.
Try it now
It only takes a few minutes to setup and you can cancel any time.
Already registered? Log in here foraccess
Resources created by teachers for teachers
Over 30,000 video lessons& teaching resources‐allin one place.
Video lessons
Quizzes & Worksheets
Classroom Integration
Lesson Plans
I would definitely recommend Study.com to my colleagues. It’s like a teacher waved a magic wand and did the work for me. I feel like it’s a lifeline.
Jennifer B.
Teacher
Try it now
Back
Coming up next:Business Activity | Definition, Types & Examples
You're on a roll. Keep up the good work!
Take QuizWatchNext Lesson
Replay
Just checking in. Are you still watching?
Yes! Keep playing.
Your next lesson will play in10 seconds
- Video
- Quiz
- Course
- Video Only
Examples of economic activities look at the type of engagements people involve themselves in. A stock trader participates in the analysis and research of markets, the strategic buying of stock, and the timely selling of stock with the motive of profit. A farmer buys seeds and plants them with the purpose of selling his harvest for a proper income. A car manufacturer buys parts to assemble cars in order to sell them in the marketplace. He can also possibly buy the needed raw materials himself and refine them to produce the needed parts for the cars. A doctor, contrary to the aforementioned examples, offers a service instead of physical goods. He provides unwell patients with things like diagnoses and healthcare advice in exchange for money. Similarly, teachers and laborers offer education and physical labor services which are compensated with money. Concessions being sold at events such as sports jerseys at sports matches are also economic activities.
To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member.
Create your account
The three main types of economic activities are business, professions, and employment. These three are umbrella terms for other operations like the distribution of goods, services, and resources, the production of those goods and services, the refinery of resources, and the abovementioned consumption of goods and services. Three categories within which the types of economic activities can be classified are production, consumption, and capital accumulation. The types of economic activity also relate to the three economic sectors (primary, secondary, and tertiary).
Business
Components of business activity include advertising and production. Although both aren't necessarily sold for the direct exchange of money, they play a key role in the ultimate conduction of economic activity in business. Economic activity further involves how businesses have to manage the distribution of resources in order to function with maximum efficiency with regard to the production of their goods and services. Businesses in the primary sector's activities usually involve the extraction of raw materials from nature such as mining, fishing, and farming. These businesses would then exchange the raw materials for a profit. Secondary sector businesses' activities center around the refinery of those natural resources. They'd buy the materials, refine them to produce something of value, and sell them up the supply chain for money. The activities of businesses in the tertiary sector pertain to the aforementioned service industry. Doctors, lawyers, and journalists all form part of practices and businesses that deliver services in exchange for money.
Professions
A profession is an occupation that an individual is positioned in, in which they make money and potentially, a career. Specialized education is a typical requirement for an individual to be hired into a profession. The importance of professions is found in how the economic activity they each conduct combines to make up the whole function of a business. Examples of professions include a teacher, doctor, accountant, and chiropractor.
Employment
Employment is the state of being paid to do a distinct set of duties. Employment normally occurs within businesses between an employee and an employer. An employee is an individual acquired by the employer to conduct the set of duties. An example of this is how the human resources manager of a company is looking for a new accountant to manage the finances. The HR manager, as the employer, goes out and recruits someone with the adequate skillset, the employee, to do the job.
 |
To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member.
Create your account
Economic activity broadly refers to the production, supply, buying, or selling of goods or services. Contrary to economic activity is non-economic activity. Instead of being about the exchange of goods and services, this type of activity is about self-satisfaction and/or social obligation. Examples of economic activities are stock trading, the sale of fresh produce or cars, and the delivery of a service like healthcare or education. The three main types of economic activity relates to business, profession, and employment.
To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member.
Create your account
Video Transcript
Economic Activities
Have you ever worked a job? Bought a hamburger? Purchased a video game at a local game store? If so, you've participated in what the business community calls economic activities. Economic activities are those steps related to the consumption of goods and services and activities in which money is exchanged for a product or service.
Economic activities are performed for the purpose of making money, gaining wealth, and creating and producing items that can be offered to the public for sale. Restaurants, large retailers and even small businesses engage in economic activities every day. The outcome of economic activities is measured monetarily.
By contrast, non-economic activities are those performed without money in mind. Maybe you volunteered at a local animal shelter or worked to prepare care packages for the military. Non-economic activities are conducted voluntarily, typically out of a sense of affection, sympathy or similar emotion. It could be related to a social cause, a religious preference, a recreational choice or a charitable goal. In non-economic activities, money is not a determining factor and cannot be used to measure the outcome; rather, that is measured in satisfaction, fulfillment and happiness.
Types of Economic Activities
There are several types of economic activities including business, professions, and employment. Let's take a closer look at each.
Our first type of economic activity is business. Whether it's a formal business, an entrepreneurial venture, or a small lemonade stand in the front yard, the economic activity of business is any activity where goods and services are exchanged for the earning of money. Any business that offers products or services to earn a profit or make a living is engaged in an economic activity.
Similarly, all the various components of a business involved in creating and distributing goods and services to the public are considered economic activities, such as marketing, production, warehousing and more.
Where else might you find business as an economic activity? A cab driver, a bank, an insurance company, even a pizza delivery store.
Our second type of economic activity is that of professions. Maybe you've held a job, or you're considering a career field, or have watched a family member or friend head off to work every day. A profession is a job performed by a person with specialized education and appropriate qualifications. Doctors have training in medicine; teachers have training in education; engineers have training in chemical or physical components - all are professions that can be earned with education and qualifications.
Professions are unique in the job market because they offer specialized services that require an extra level of training. A person who works at a retail store or restaurant may have a career, but might not be considered a profession.
Finally we have employment. When your mother or father head off to work in the morning, or you visit a small cafe where an employee takes your order, this is considered employment. Employment happens when one person offers his or her services for an employer and is compensated with a salary or wage. The employer may be an individual or a business, and the individual who acquires employment is called an employee.
Unlike a profession, employment is generally more attainable to individuals without specialized education or training, because training can be conducted on the job. In employment, duties are assigned to the employee by the employer.
Lesson Summary
Economic activities involve the transfer of money for goods and services. These transactions and experiences differ from non-economic activities, which are typically conducted for free, for personal, religious, or social reasons. Economic activities can be measured in money earned, while non-economic activities are measured in fulfillment, satisfaction and happiness.
Three types of economic activities are classified by business, professions and employment. Businesses can be larger or small and are focused on providing goods and services in exchange for earning profit. A profession requires specialized training and education such as law or medicine, but employment can generally be gained with limited experience and on-the-job training.
To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member.
Create your account
Register to view this lesson
Are you a student or a teacher?
Unlock Your Education
See for yourself why 30 million people use Study.com
Become a Study.com member and start learning now.
Become a Member
Already a member? Log In
Resources created by teachers for teachers
Over 30,000 video lessons& teaching resources‐allin one place.
Video lessons
Quizzes & Worksheets
Classroom Integration
Lesson Plans
I would definitely recommend Study.com to my colleagues. It’s like a teacher waved a magic wand and did the work for me. I feel like it’s a lifeline.
Jennifer B.
Teacher
Try it now
Back
Recommended Lessons and Courses for You
- Related Lessons
- Related Courses
