Inferring Rationales from Choice: Identification for Rational Shortlist Methods

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Dutta, Rohan; Horan, Sean
• 署名单位: McGill University; Universite de Montreal; Universite de Montreal
• 刊物名称: AMERICAN ECONOMIC JOURNAL-MICROECONOMICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 1945-7669
• DOI: 10.1257/mic.20130118
• 发表日期: 2015
• 页码: 179-201
• 关键词: theoretic foundations

摘要

A wide variety of choice behavior inconsistent with preference maximization can be explained by Manzini and Mariotti's Rational Shortlist Methods. Choices are made by sequentially applying a pair of asymmetric binary relations (rationales) to eliminate inferior alternatives. Manzini and Mariotti's axiomatic treatment elegantly describes which behavior can be explained by this model. However, it leaves unanswered what can be inferred, from observed behavior, about the underlying rationales. Establishing this connection is fundamental not only for applied and empirical work but also for meaningful welfare analysis. Our results tightly characterize the surprisingly rich relationship between behavior and the underlying rationales.