Social learning with differentiated products

A-Tier
Journal: RAND Journal of Economics
Year: 2019
Volume: 50
Issue: 1
Pages: 226-248

Score contribution per author:

4.022 = (α=2.01 / 1 authors) × 2.0x A-tier

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

Abstract

Learning from friends is a key process by which consumers acquire information about available products. This article embeds social learning in a model of firms producing differentiated products. I consider how the structure of social relationships between consumers influences pricing and welfare. In particular, how a variety of characteristics of social networks ‐ distribution of friendships, homophily, clustering, and correlations between an individual's preferences and number of friends ‐ influence these outcomes. I also find conditions under which consumer awareness and the sensitivity of demand to prices are useful measures of the informational efficiency of markets.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:bla:randje:v:50:y:2019:i:1:p:226-248
Journal Field
Industrial Organization
Author Count
1
Added to Database
2026-01-25