Strategic self-ignorance
Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
We examine strategic self-ignorance—the use of ignorance as an excuse to over-indulge in pleasurable activities that may be harmful to one’s future self. Our model shows that guilt aversion provides a behavioral rationale for present-biased agents to avoid information about negative future impacts of such activities. We then confront our model with data from an experiment using prepared, restaurant-style meals—a good that is transparent in immediate pleasure (taste) but non-transparent in future harm (calories). Our results support the notion that strategic self-ignorance matters: nearly three of five subjects (58%) chose to ignore free information on calorie content, leading at-risk subjects to consume significantly more calories. We also find evidence consistent with our model on the determinants of strategic self-ignorance.
Original language | English |
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Journal | Journal of Risk and Uncertainty |
Volume | 52 |
Issue number | 2 |
Pages (from-to) | 117-126 |
Number of pages | 10 |
ISSN | 0895-5646 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2016 |
ID: 162710133