cobweb model

noun

An economic model that ascribes the periodic price fluctuations in certain types of market to cyclical supply and demand where the amount produced must be chosen before prices are observed, and producers' expectations about prices are assumed to be based on observations of previous prices.

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Meanings

nouncobweb model (plural cobweb models)

plural cobweb models

  1. economicsAn economic model that ascribes the periodic price fluctuations in certain types of market to cyclical supply and demand where the amount produced must be chosen before prices are observed, and producers' expectations about prices are assumed to be based on observations of previous prices.

Origin

So called because it can be represented in a diagram as curves overlaid on a spiral, resembling a spider's web.

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Cite this entry
APA

cobweb model. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cobweb%20model

MLA

“cobweb model.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cobweb%20model. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “cobweb model,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cobweb%20model.

Source: cobweb model on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.