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Uncertain Lifetime And Intertemporal Choice: Risk Aversion As A Rationale For Time Discounting

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Antoine Bommier

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Abstract

This article makes explicit the links between preferences over lotteries on length of life and intertemporal choice. It shows that the approach used by traditional life cycle models to account for uncertain survival corresponds to a strong assumption of risk neutrality with respect to length of life. Relaxing such an assumption leads us to develop a more general formulation of lifetime utility in which time discounting is directly related to preferences over length of life. Exponential and hyperbolic discounting are found to result, in a first approximation, from constant and hyperbolic risk aversion with respect to length of life. Copyright 2006 by the Economics Department Of The University Of Pennsylvania And Osaka University Institute Of Social And Economic Research Association.

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File URL: http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1468-2354.2006.00411.x
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Publisher Info
Article provided by Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association in its journal International Economic Review.

Volume (Year): 47 (2006)
Issue (Month): 4 (November)
Pages: 1223-1246
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Handle: RePEc:ier:iecrev:v:47:y:2006:i:4:p:1223-1246

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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.:
  1. Leung, S.F., 1992. "Uncertain Lifetime, the Theory of the Consumer, and the Life Cycle Hypothesis," RCER Working Papers 323, University of Rochester - Center for Economic Research (RCER).
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  2. Antoine Bommier, 2001. "Aversion for early death and the structure of time preference," Research Unit Working Papers 0106, Laboratoire d'Economie Appliquee, INRA. [Downloadable!]
  3. Laibson, David, 1997. "Golden Eggs and Hyperbolic Discounting," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 112(2), pages 443-77, May.
  4. Loewenstein, George & Prelec, Drazen, 1992. "Anomalies in Intertemporal Choice: Evidence and an Interpretation," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 107(2), pages 573-97, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Harris, Christopher & Laibson, David, 2001. "Dynamic Choices of Hyperbolic Consumers," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 69(4), pages 935-57, July.
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  6. Becker, Gary S & Mulligan, Casey B, 1997. "The Endogenous Determination of Time Preference," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 112(3), pages 729-58, August.
  7. George-Marios Angeletos et al., 2001. "The Hyberbolic Consumption Model: Calibration, Simulation, and Empirical Evaluation," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 15(3), pages 47-68, Summer. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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Cited by:
(explanations, 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.)

  1. Antoine Bommier & Bertrand Villeneuve, 2004. "Risk Aversion and the Value of Risk to Life," CESifo Working Paper Series CESifo Working Paper No. , CESifo GmbH. [Downloadable!]
  2. Frederick van der Ploeg, 2007. "Prudent Budgetary Policy: Political Economy of Precautionary Taxation," CESifo Working Paper Series CESifo Working Paper No. , CESifo GmbH. [Downloadable!]
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  3. Antoine Bommier, 2003. "Mortality and Life-Cycle Models," Research Unit Working Papers 0314, Laboratoire d'Economie Appliquee, INRA. [Downloadable!]
  4. Antoine Bommier, 2001. "Aversion for early death and the structure of time preference," Research Unit Working Papers 0106, Laboratoire d'Economie Appliquee, INRA. [Downloadable!]
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