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The Tree that Hides the Forest: A Note on Revealed Preference

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  • João V. Ferreira

    (GREQAM - Groupement de Recherche en Économie Quantitative d'Aix-Marseille - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - AMU - Aix Marseille Université - ECM - École Centrale de Marseille - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)

Abstract

The common interpretation given to choice behavior that satisfies the traditional revealed preference axioms is that it results from the maximization of a single preference. We show that choice data alone does not enable one to rule out the possibility that the choice behavior that satisfies the revealed preference axioms is instead the result of the aggregation of a collection of distinct preferences. In particular, we show that any ordering is observationally equivalent to a majoritarian aggregation of a collection of distinct dichotomous orderings. We also show that any ordering is observationally equivalent to a Borda's aggregation of a collection of distinct linear orderings.

Suggested Citation

  • João V. Ferreira, 2016. "The Tree that Hides the Forest: A Note on Revealed Preference," Working Papers halshs-01386451, HAL.
    • Handle: RePEc:hal:wpaper:halshs-01386451
    Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://shs.hal.science/halshs-01386451
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Keywords

    revealed preference theory; rationalization; dichotomous preferences; aggregation rules; choice data;
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