A discussion of the reasons why it may be in a government agency's--and society's--best interest to be vague about policy objectives. Using the concept of "cheap talk," the author explains that when an agency faces a trade-off between precise and credible announcements, its best move may be to provide truthful but limited information.
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Article provided by Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland in its journal Economic Review.
References listed on IDEAS Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
Matthews, Steven A. & Okuno-Fujiwara, Masahiro & Postlewaite, Andrew, 1991.
"Refining cheap-talk equilibria,"
Journal of Economic Theory,
Elsevier, vol. 55(2), pages 247-273, December.
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Other versions:
Steven A. Matthews & M. Okuno-Fujiwara & Andrew Postlewaite, 1990.
"Refining Cheap-Talk Equilibria,"
Discussion Papers
892R, Northwestern University, Center for Mathematical Studies in Economics and Management Science.
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