The Rich Domain of Uncertainty: Source Functions and Their Experimental Implementation

S-Tier
Journal: American Economic Review
Year: 2011
Volume: 101
Issue: 2
Pages: 695-723

Score contribution per author:

2.011 = (α=2.01 / 4 authors) × 4.0x S-tier

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

Abstract

We often deal with uncertain events for which no probabilities are known. Several normative models have been proposed. Descriptive studies have usually been qualitative, or they estimated ambiguity aversion through one single number. This paper introduces the source method, a tractable method for quantitatively analyzing uncertainty empirically. The theoretical key is the distinction between different sources of uncertainty, within which subjective (choice-based) probabilities can still be defined. Source functions convert those subjective probabilities into willingness to bet. We apply our method in an experiment, where we do not commit to particular ambiguity attitudes but let the data speak. (JEL D81)

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:aea:aecrev:v:101:y:2011:i:2:p:695-723
Journal Field
General
Author Count
4
Added to Database
2026-01-24