History-dependent risk attitude

A-Tier
Journal: Journal of Economic Theory
Year: 2015
Volume: 157
Issue: C
Pages: 445-477

Authors (2)

Dillenberger, David (not in RePEc) Rozen, Kareen (Brown University)

Score contribution per author:

2.018 = (α=2.02 / 2 authors) × 2.0x A-tier

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

Abstract

We propose a model of history-dependent risk attitude, allowing a decision maker's risk attitude to be affected by his history of disappointments and elations. The decision maker recursively evaluates compound risks, classifying realizations as disappointing or elating using a threshold rule. We establish equivalence between the model and two cognitive biases: risk attitudes are reinforced by experiences (one is more risk averse after disappointment than after elation) and there is a primacy effect (early outcomes have the greatest impact on risk attitude). In a dynamic asset pricing problem, the model yields volatile, path-dependent prices.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:eee:jetheo:v:157:y:2015:i:c:p:445-477
Journal Field
Theory
Author Count
2
Added to Database
2026-01-29