Non-convexity (economics)

Non-convexity (economics) is a term used to describe a situation where the costs or benefits (economic values) of something are not evenly spread out across the people affected by the decision. For example, if a company is trying to decide whether or not to build a new factory, the costs of setting up and running the factory might be expensive but the benefits of getting additional jobs, more products, and more money might only be seen by a few people in the community while the costs and risks are shared by everyone. Non-convexity means that the costs and benefits may not be distributed evenly and some people may be better off than others in terms of the outcome.