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When can expected utility handle first-order risk aversion?

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  • Dionne, Georges

    (HEC Montreal, Canada Research Chair in Risk Management)

  • Li, Jingyuan

    (Lingnan University)

Abstract

Expected utility functions are limited to second-order (conditional) risk aversion, while non-expected utility functions can exhibit either first-order or second-order (conditional) risk aversion. We extend the concept of orders of conditional risk aversion to orders of conditional dependent risk aversion. We show that first-order conditional dependent risk aversion is consistent with the framework of the expected utility hypothesis. Our theoretical result proposes new insights into economic and financial applications such as the equity premium puzzle, the cost of business cycles, and stock market participation. Our model is compared to the rank-dependent expected utility model.

Suggested Citation

  • Dionne, Georges & Li, Jingyuan, 2014. "When can expected utility handle first-order risk aversion?," Working Papers 11-1, HEC Montreal, Canada Research Chair in Risk Management.
    • Handle: RePEc:ris:crcrmw:2011_001
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    Cited by:

    1. Li, Jingyuan & Liu, Dongri & Wang, Jianli, 2016. "Risk aversion with two risks: A theoretical extension," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 63(C), pages 100-105.
    2. Dionne, Georges & Harrington, Scott, 2017. "Insurance and Insurance Markets," Working Papers 17-2, HEC Montreal, Canada Research Chair in Risk Management.
    3. Guo, Xu & Li, Jingyuan, 2016. "Confidence band for expectation dependence with applications," Insurance: Mathematics and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 141-149.
    4. Johannes G. Jaspersen & Richard Peter & Marc A. Ragin, 2023. "Probability weighting and insurance demand in a unified framework," The Geneva Risk and Insurance Review, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association for the Study of Insurance Economics (The Geneva Association), vol. 48(1), pages 63-109, March.
    5. Louis Eeckhoudt & Anna Maria Fiori & Emanuela Rosazza Gianin, 2018. "Risk Aversion, Loss Aversion, and the Demand for Insurance," Risks, MDPI, vol. 6(2), pages 1-19, May.
    6. Wong, Kit Pong, 2022. "Diversification and risk attitudes toward two risks," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    7. Henry Chiu, W., 2020. "Financial risk taking in the presence of correlated non-financial background risk," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 167-179.
    8. Wang, Jianli & Liu, Liqun & Neilson, William S., 2020. "The participation puzzle with reference-dependent expected utility preferences," Insurance: Mathematics and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 93(C), pages 278-287.
    9. Guo, Xu & Li, Jingyuan & Liu, Dongri & Wang, Jianli, 2016. "Preserving the Rothschild–Stiglitz type of increasing risk with background risk," Insurance: Mathematics and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 144-149.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Expected utility theory; first-order conditional dependent risk aversion; background risk; equity premium puzzle; consumption risk in business cycles; coward gambler; stock market participation; rank-dependent expected utility model;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D81 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Criteria for Decision-Making under Risk and Uncertainty
    • G10 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - General (includes Measurement and Data)
    • G11 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Portfolio Choice; Investment Decisions
    • G12 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Asset Pricing; Trading Volume; Bond Interest Rates

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