Student Understanding of Price, Value, and Profit and Attitudes Toward Profit as Reward or Exploitation at Gulu University, 2026: Baseline Distributions and Short-Term Change After an Educational Event

This study examines the baseline distributions and the short-term changes in responses to five statements concerning the distinction between price, value, and profit, the subjectivity of value, the determination of price, and the character of profit as either exploitation or a reward for risk. The statements were administered before and after the Entrepreneurship and Leadership Conference held at Gulu University in September 2026 as part of the African Forum for Development and Innovation multi-university longitudinal survey. One hundred and two participants completed both waves of the anonymous voluntary questionnaire. Prior to the conference, 86.3 percent of respondents agreed that they understand the difference between price, value, and profit, 53.9 percent agreed that price is set by sellers, 66.7 percent agreed that value is subjective, 7.8 percent agreed that profit is how the rich exploit the poor, and 93.1 percent agreed that profit is the reward following a risk taken before and during an exchange. After the conference the corresponding percentages of Yes responses were 98.0 percent, 66.7 percent, 78.4 percent, 9.8 percent, and 91.2 percent. The largest gains appeared on self-reported understanding of the distinction (+11.7 percentage points), on the claim that price is set by sellers (+12.8 percentage points), and on the claim that value is subjective (+11.7 percentage points). Agreement that profit is how the rich exploit the poor remained low and essentially unchanged. These results indicate that participants already rejected the exploitation claim and already accepted profit as a reward for risk, and that the event was associated with further gains in conceptual understanding of price and value. The findings constitute the first university-level case in a planned multi-year series that will apply the same five statements at additional institutions.