An economics student makes the following statement: "It's easy to understand why the aggregate demand curve is downward sloping: When the price level increases, consumers substitute into less expensive products, thereby decreasing total spending in the economy." This statement is false because the aggregate demand curve is

The aggregate demand curve is downward sloping because when the general level of price rise; the real wealth of consumers will decline (with a certain amount of money you end up buying less goods), the interest rates will increase (as inflation increases, interest rates also increase), and the price of exported goods increases (as the general price of goods increase, the production of goods will also become more expensive).