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On the effect of anchoring on valuations when the anchor is transparently uninformative

Author

Listed:
  • Konstantinos Ioannidis

    (University of Amsterdam)

  • Theo Offerman

    (University of Amsterdam)

  • Randolph Sloof

    (University of Amsterdam)

Abstract

We test whether anchoring affects people's elicited valuations for a bottle of wine in individual decision making and in markets. We anchor subjects by asking them if they are willing to sell a bottle of wine for a transparently uninformative random price. We elicit subjects' Willingness-To-Accept for the bottle before and after the market. Subjects participate in a double auction market either in a small or a large trading group. The variance in subjects' Willingness-To-Accept shrinks within trading groups. Our evidence supports the idea that markets have the potential to diminish anchoring effects. However, the market is not needed: our anchoring manipulation failed in a large sample.

Suggested Citation

  • Konstantinos Ioannidis & Theo Offerman & Randolph Sloof, 2019. "On the effect of anchoring on valuations when the anchor is transparently uninformative," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 19-074/I, Tinbergen Institute, revised 27 Apr 2020.
    • Handle: RePEc:tin:wpaper:20190074
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    4. Jonathan E. Alevy & Craig E. Landry & John A. List, 2015. "Field Experiments On The Anchoring Of Economic Valuations," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 53(3), pages 1522-1538, July.
    5. Drew Fudenberg & David K. Levine & Zacharias Maniadis, 2012. "On the Robustness of Anchoring Effects in WTP and WTA Experiments," American Economic Journal: Microeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 4(2), pages 131-145, May.
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    11. repec:cup:judgdm:v:14:y:2019:i:4:p:470-487 is not listed on IDEAS
    12. Sugden, Robert & Zheng, Jiwei & Zizzo, Daniel John, 2013. "Not all anchors are created equal," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 21-31.
    13. Isoni, Andrea & Brooks, Peter & Loomes, Graham & Sugden, Robert, 2016. "Do markets reveal preferences or shape them?," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 122(C), pages 1-16.
    14. Dan Ariely & George Loewenstein & Drazen Prelec, 2003. ""Coherent Arbitrariness": Stable Demand Curves Without Stable Preferences," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 118(1), pages 73-106.
    15. Bergman, Oscar & Ellingsen, Tore & Johannesson, Magnus & Svensson, Cicek, 2010. "Anchoring and cognitive ability," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 107(1), pages 66-68, April.
    16. Zacharias Maniadis & Fabio Tufano & John A. List, 2014. "One Swallow Doesn't Make a Summer: New Evidence on Anchoring Effects," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 104(1), pages 277-290, January.
    17. Schkade, David A. & Johnson, Eric J., 1989. "Cognitive processes in preference reversals," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 44(2), pages 203-231, October.
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    Cited by:

    1. Benjamin Enke & Uri Gneezy & Brian Hall & David Martin & Vadim Nelidov & Theo Offerman & Jeroen van de Ven, 2020. "Cognitive Biases: Mistakes or Missing Stakes?," CESifo Working Paper Series 8168, CESifo.
    2. Chang, Yun-chien & Chen, Kong-Pin & Liao, Jen-Che & Lin, Chang-Ching, 2023. "Ask more, awarded more: Evidence from Taiwan’s courts," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    3. repec:osf:osfxxx:98qdv_v1 is not listed on IDEAS
    4. Ioannidis, Konstantinos, 2023. "Anchoring on valuations and perceived informativeness," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 106(C).
    5. Bahník, Štěpán & Yoon, Sangsuk, 2023. "Anchoring effect in business," OSF Preprints 98qdv, Center for Open Science.
    6. Magdalena Brzozowicz & Michał Krawczyk, 2020. "Honey, Mugs and Caricatures: anchors on prices of consumer goods only hold hypothetically," Working Papers 2020-40, Faculty of Economic Sciences, University of Warsaw.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    anchoring; replication; market; experiment;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D91 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making
    • C91 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Laboratory, Individual Behavior

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