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Aspiration Traps

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  • Aviad Heifetz
  • Enrico Minelli

Abstract

Fundamental choices, like location or education, affect the attitudes and beliefs with which the individual will analyze future day to day decision problems. These effects cannot be assumed to be transparent to the individual. To restore methodological discipline in the analysis of such choices, we propose a solution concept based on an idea of consistency: the individual should not regret her fundamental choices after her preferences and beliefs have adjusted thereof. We show that even single person decision problems admit multiple, Pareto-ranked solutions: the individual might be stuck in an aspiration trap.

Suggested Citation

  • Aviad Heifetz & Enrico Minelli, 2006. "Aspiration Traps," Working Papers ubs0610, University of Brescia, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:ubs:wpaper:ubs0610
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Dalton, Patricio S. & Ghosal, Sayantan, 2013. "Characterizing Behavioral Decisions with Choice Datas," SIRE Discussion Papers 2013-86, Scottish Institute for Research in Economics (SIRE).
    2. Alessandro Fedele & Paolo M. Panteghini & Sergio Vergalli, 2011. "Optimal Investment and Financial Strategies under Tax‐Rate Uncertainty," German Economic Review, Verein für Socialpolitik, vol. 12(4), pages 438-468, November.
    3. Paula Carrasco & Rodrigo Ceni & Ivone Perazzo & Gonzalo Salas, 2021. "Are Not Any Silver Linings in the Cloud? Subjective Well-being Among Deprived Young People," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 22(2), pages 491-516, February.
    4. Patricio S. Dalton & Sayantan Ghosal & Anandi Mani, 2016. "Poverty and Aspirations Failure," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 126(590), pages 165-188, February.
    5. Del Boca, Alessandra & Fratianni, Michele & Spinelli, Franco & Trecroci, Carmine, 2010. "The Phillips curve and the Italian lira, 1861-1998," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 21(2), pages 182-197, August.
    6. Amedeo Fossati & Rosella Levaggi, 2008. "Delay is not the answer: waiting time in health care & income redistribution," Working Papers 0801, University of Brescia, Department of Economics.
    7. Alessandro Fedele & Raffaele Miniaci, 2010. "Do Social Enterprises Finance Their Investments Differently from For-profit Firms? The Case of Social Residential Services in Italy," Journal of Social Entrepreneurship, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 1(2), pages 174-189, October.
    8. Zuluaga, Blanca, 2013. "Quality of social networks and educational investment decisions," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 72-82.
    9. T. Q. Bao & B. S. Mordukhovich & A. Soubeyran, 2015. "Variational Analysis in Psychological Modeling," Journal of Optimization Theory and Applications, Springer, vol. 164(1), pages 290-315, January.
    10. Dalton, Patricio & Ghosal, Sayantan, 2008. "Behavioural Decisions and Welfare," The Warwick Economics Research Paper Series (TWERPS) 834, University of Warwick, Department of Economics.
    11. Siegfried Berninghaus & Werner Güth & M. Levati & Jianying Qiu, 2011. "Satisficing search versus aspiration adaptation in sales competition: experimental evidence," International Journal of Game Theory, Springer;Game Theory Society, vol. 40(1), pages 179-198, February.
    12. Martin Meier & Enrico Minelli & Herakles Polemarchakis, 2014. "Competitive markets with private information on both sides," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 55(2), pages 257-280, February.
    13. Rosella Levaggi & Francesco Menoncin, 2009. "Decentralized provision of merit and impure public goods," Working Papers 0909, University of Brescia, Department of Economics.
    14. Bisin, A. & Geanakoplos, J.D. & Gottardi, P. & Minelli, E. & Polemarchakis, H., 2011. "Markets and contracts," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 47(3), pages 279-288.
    15. Francesco Menoncin & Paolo Panteghini, 2009. "Retrospective Capital Gains Taxation in the Real World," CESifo Working Paper Series 2674, CESifo.
    16. Alessandro Fedele & Francesco Liucci & Andrea Mantovani, 2009. "Credit availability in the crisis: the European investment bank group," Working Papers 0913, University of Brescia, Department of Economics.

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