Money Illusion

S-Tier
Journal: Quarterly Journal of Economics
Year: 1997
Volume: 112
Issue: 2
Pages: 341-374

Authors (3)

Eldar Shafir (not in RePEc) Peter Diamond (not in RePEc) Amos Tversky (not in RePEc)

Score contribution per author:

2.681 = (α=2.01 / 3 authors) × 4.0x S-tier

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

Abstract

The term "money illusion" refers to a tendency to think in terms of nominal rather than real monetary values. Money illusion has significant implications for economic theory, yet it implies a lack of rationality that is alien to economists. This paper reviews survey questions regarding people's reactions to variations in inflation and prices, designed to shed light on the psychology that underlies money illusion. We propose that people often think about economic transactions in both nominal and real terms, and that money illusion arises from an interaction between these representations, which results in a bias toward a nominal evaluation.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:oup:qjecon:v:112:y:1997:i:2:p:341-374.
Journal Field
General
Author Count
3
Added to Database
2026-01-25