Learning in speculative bubbles: Theory and experiment

B-Tier
Journal: Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization
Year: 2021
Volume: 185
Issue: C
Pages: 1-26

Authors (3)

Hong, Jieying (not in RePEc) Moinas, Sophie (Toulouse School of Economics (...) Pouget, Sébastien (not in RePEc)

Score contribution per author:

0.670 = (α=2.01 / 3 authors) × 1.0x B-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

Does learning reduce or fuel speculative bubbles? We study this issue in the context of the Bubble Game proposed by Moinas and Pouget (2013). Our theoretical analysis based on adaptive learning shows that i) in the long run, learning induces convergence to the unique no-bubble equilibrium, ii) in the short run, more experienced traders create more bubbles, and iii) learning is more difficult when more steps of reasoning are necessary to reach equilibrium. These predictions are consistent with our experimental observations. We find that reinforcement learning rather than belief-based learning is driving behavior in our experiment.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:eee:jeborg:v:185:y:2021:i:c:p:1-26
Journal Field
Theory
Author Count
3
Added to Database
2026-01-26