Bertrand and Walras Equilibria under Moral Hazard

S-Tier
Journal: Journal of Political Economy
Year: 2003
Volume: 111
Issue: 4
Pages: 785-817

Authors (2)

Alberto Bennardo (Università degli Studi di Sale...) Pierre-Andre Chiappori (not in RePEc)

Score contribution per author:

4.022 = (α=2.01 / 2 authors) × 4.0x S-tier

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

Abstract

We consider a simple model of competition under moral hazard with constant return technologies. We consider preferences that are not separable in effort: marginal utility of income is assumed to increase with leisure, especially for high income levels. We show that, in this context, Bertrand competition may result in positive equilibrium profit. This result holds for purely idiosyncratic shocks when only deterministic contracts are considered and extends to unrestricted contract spaces in the presence of aggregate uncertainty. Finally, these findings have important consequences on the definition of an equilibrium. We show that, in this context, a Walrasian general equilibrium à la Prescott-Townsend may fail to exist: any "equilibrium" must involve rationing.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:ucp:jpolec:v:111:y:2003:i:4:p:785-817
Journal Field
General
Author Count
2
Added to Database
2026-01-24