What average area does deadweight loss typically occupy on a supply and demand graph?

The average area that deadweight loss occupies on a supply and demand graph is correctly represented by a left triangle between the supply and demand curves. Deadweight loss arises when there is a market distortion, such as a tax or price control, that prevents the market from reaching equilibrium.

In this context, the area of deadweight loss is visually depicted as a triangle formed between the supply curve and the demand curve. Specifically, this area is created when the quantity traded in the market is less than the socially optimal quantity due to the distortion. The base of the triangle is the difference in quantity supplied and quantity demanded at the distorted price level, while the height of the triangle corresponds to the difference between what consumers are willing to pay and what producers are willing to accept at those quantities.

The triangular shape effectively captures the lost economic efficiency resulting from the market intervention, illustrating both consumer and producer surplus that could have existed in the absence of the distortion. This conceptualization of deadweight loss helps to highlight the inefficiencies introduced into the market and the benefits that could be realized if equilibrium were reached.

Other answer choices do not correctly capture this concept. The notion of a right triangle under the demand curve is not reflective of deadweight loss, as that area does not represent the