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Shopping Time

Author

Listed:
  • Nicolas Petrosky-Nadeau

    (Tepper School of Business - CMU - Carnegie Mellon University [Pittsburgh])

  • Etienne Wasmer

    (ECON - Département d'économie (Sciences Po) - Sciences Po - Sciences Po - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)

  • Shutian Zeng

Abstract

The renewal of interest in macroeconomic theories of search frictions in the goods market requires a deeper understanding of the cyclical properties of the intensive margins in this market. We review the theoretical mechanisms that promote either procyclical or countercyclical movements in time spent searching for consumer goods and services, and then use the American Time Use Survey to measure shopping time through the Great Recession. Average time spent searching declined in the aggregate over the period 2008-2010 compared to 2005-2007, and the decline was largest for the unemployed who went from spending more to less time searching for goods than the employed. Cross-state regressions point towards a procyclicality of consumer search in the goods market. At the individual level, time allocated to different shopping activities is increasing in individual and household income. Overall, this body of evidence supports procyclical consumer search effort in the goods market and a conclusion that price comparisons cannot be a driver of business cycles.

Suggested Citation

  • Nicolas Petrosky-Nadeau & Etienne Wasmer & Shutian Zeng, 2014. "Shopping Time," SciencePo Working papers hal-03460207, HAL.
    • Handle: RePEc:hal:wpspec:hal-03460207
    Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://sciencespo.hal.science/hal-03460207
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Christian Broda & David E. Weinstein, 2010. "Product Creation and Destruction: Evidence and Price Implications," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 100(3), pages 691-723, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Petrosky-Nadeau, Nicolas & Wasmer, Etienne, 2015. "Macroeconomic dynamics in a model of goods, labor, and credit market frictions," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 97-113.
    2. Brzustowski, Thomas & Petrosky-Nadeau, Nicolas & Wasmer, Etienne, 2018. "Disentangling goods, labor, and credit market frictions in three European economies," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 180-196.
    3. Paweł Borys & Paweł Doligalski & Paweł Kopiec, 2018. "Labor market institutions in a shopping economy," NBP Working Papers 275, Narodowy Bank Polski.
    4. Pau Roldan & Sophia Gilbukh, 2017. "Firm Dynamics and Pricing under Customer Capital Accumulation," 2017 Meeting Papers 1235, Society for Economic Dynamics.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Goods market search; time allocation; American Time Use Survey; business cycles;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D12 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis
    • E32 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Business Fluctuations; Cycles
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply

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