Analisis Perilaku Konsumen Mahasiswa dalam Memaksimumkan Kepuasan melalui Pendekatan Utilitas, Kurva Indiferen, dan Garis Anggaran

Abstract

Students are consumers who face limited economic resources while trying to satisfy diverse needs. These limits encourage students to make rational consumption choices in order to obtain maximum satisfaction. This study analyzes student consumer behavior in maximizing satisfaction through utility theory, indifference curves, and the budget line. It uses a qualitative-descriptive library research method based on four main and four supporting sources. The findings show that, theoretically, total satisfaction increases with consumption while marginal utility declines in line with the law of diminishing marginal utility. Students can substitute goods to remain at the same level of satisfaction, while income limits, represented by the budget line, constrain their choices. Consumer equilibrium is reached where the highest attainable indifference curve is tangent to the budget line. A hypothetical numerical illustration shows that higher income shifts the budget line outward, whereas a higher price rotates it inward. For Muslim students, the model can be extended with charitable spending, a restriction to halal goods, and zakat above the nisab threshold. The study is conceptual and does not test student consumption patterns with empirical data; its conclusions therefore indicate the relevance of an analytical framework, not proof that these patterns hold for any particular group of students.