Multitasking, complementarities, and information disclosure: Theory and evidence from the U.K.
72 Pages Posted: 7 Mar 2023 Last revised: 7 Sep 2023
Date Written: August 24, 2023
Abstract
We analyze the role of cost complementarities in driving the overall impact of a recent hygiene-rating disclosure policy in the U.K. We develop a simple theoretical multitasking model, which serves as a platform for our empirical analysis. We conduct a counterfactual analysis, which reveals the extent to which complementarities drive overall hygiene ratings. Further, we conduct a policy experiment, which sheds light on the optimal design of hygiene-rating information disclosure policies. We also show the differential impact of the policy on different types of establishments.
Keywords: Multitasking, Information Disclosure, Complementarities, Product Quality, Food Hygiene
JEL Classification: D73, I18, K23, L51
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