Bad Habits and the Endogenous Timing of Urges

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Landry, Peter
• 署名单位: University of Toronto
• 刊物名称: REVIEW OF ECONOMIC STUDIES
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0034-6527
• DOI: 10.1093/restud/rdx079
• 发表日期: 2019
• 页码: 785-806
• 关键词: smoking prevalence; cigarette-smoking; cue reactivity; nicotine; tobacco; predictors; dependence; addiction; curiosity; BEHAVIOR

摘要

I present a theory of harmful addiction in which giving in to an unwanted urge ( consumption) delays the recurrence of urges in the short-run, but increases their long-run frequency. The theory offers new predictions as to how the frequency, levels, cue-dependence, and temporal consistency of consumption evolve during habituation, while uniquely capturing near-term substitution in demand across time. New welfare implications for restrictions on consumption and on marketing are also addressed.