We analyze consumer demand behavior using Dynamic Random Utility Model (DRUM). Under DRUM, a consumer draws a utility function from a stochastic utility process in each period and maximizes this utility subject to her budget constraint. DRUM allows unrestricted time correlation and cross-section...

An economic interpretation of Epictetus's precept of 'Taking away aversion from all things not in our power' consists of extending the do- main of indifference beyond its boundaries under non-ethical preferences, so as to yield indifference between outcomes differing only on things out- side...

This note explains the equivalence between approximate rationalizability and approximate cost-rationalizability within the context of consumer demand. In connection with these results, we interpret Afriat’s (1973) critical cost efficiency index (CCEI) as a measure of cost (in)efficiency, in...

This paper reviews the literature on incorporating behavioural elements into epidemiological models of pandemics. While modelling behaviour by forward-looking rational agents can provide some insight into the time paths of pandemics, the non-stationary nature of Susceptible-Infected-Removed...

Purpose This paper aims to explain the nature of the economic agent in Islamic economics. He is commonly referred to as Homo Islamicus. Design/methodology/approach This is done by deriving the concept from the Qurʾān as the primary epistemological source in Islamic economics. The paper, thus,...

We study belief updating about relative performance in an ego-relevant task. Manipulating the perceived ego-relevance of the task, we show that subjects update their beliefs optimistically because they derive direct utility flows from holding positive beliefs. This finding provides a behavioral...

According to Epictetus, mental freedom and happiness can be achieved by distinguishing between, on the one hand, things that are upon our con- trol (our acts, opinions and desires), and, on the other hand, things that are not upon our control (our body, property, offi ces and reputation), and by...

We extend the swaps index of rationality, introduced by Apesteguia and Ballester (2015) for a finite set of alternatives, to the standard consumer choice setting with infinite commodity spaces. Applications include consumer demand from competitive budget sets and the state-space approach to...

Level-k thinking and Cognitive Hierarchy have been widely applied as a normalform solution concept in behavioral and experimental game theory. We consider the extension of level-k thinking to extensive-form games. Player's may learn about levels of opponents' thinking during the play of the game...

Die Qualität historischer Stadträume hat seit jeher eine besondere Faszination auf Stadtplaner*innen und Architekt*innen ausgeübt. Mit der Kritik an der modernen Stadt nach 1960 erfuhr die Betrachtung der alten Städte einen neuen Aufschwung. In Kombination unter anderem mit den...

The need for reducing meat consumption in affluent countries is increasingly recognized as crucial to minimizing carbon footprint. However, confronting individuals with rational arguments can prompt emotional discomfort, which is often relieved by engaging in rationalization processes...

Sir Lawrence Olivier prefaces his acclaimed 1948 film version of Hamlet with a description of the prince as “a man who could not make up his mind.” Such a description renders the Danish brooder almost anti-economic: an inability to choose typically is banished axiomatically from choice...

We theorize that both highly rational entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs with a high need for cognitive closure (NFCC) are likely to put more emphasis on retrospective factors (period and degree of underperformance, personal investments) and less on prospective factors (risk of going into default,...

Can public information complement private information acquisition? What are the implicationsfor asset market performance? Our paper investigates by constructing a simple bond market in thelaboratory. Human investors observe public information on default probability and then, beforetrading,...

Rent control policies seek to ensure affordable and stable housing for current tenants; however, they also increase the incentive for landlords to evict tenants since rents re-set when tenants leave. We exploit variation across zip codes in policy exposure to the 1994 rent control referendum in...

Let α denote risk preference parameters, such that α→0 (respectively, α→Z0) implies tatonnement towards risk seeking preferences (respectively, risk aversion). Suppose either of two agents, i and j enter into a market with risk preference parameters, α₀(i)=0.1 or α₀(j)=Z-0.1. With T...

The paper studies the behavior of individuals in situations of probabilistic uncertainty, wherein randomness is simulated to promote rational decision-making. Behavioral heuristics like Mean Reversion, Mental Accounting, Ambiguity, and Overconfidence were observed even in situations of...

Traditionally, in the Federal Reserve's Open Market statements, the planned Federal Funds rate is set to be contained within well defined bands and not a given single value, so that the funds rate is able to vary freely within that range without interference.This paper provides an explanation of...