De Gustibus Non Est Disputandum: An Experimental Investigation

34 Pages Posted: 25 Oct 2014 Last revised: 3 Sep 2024

See all articles by Utteeyo Dasgupta

Utteeyo Dasgupta

Fordham University; IZA; Global Labor Organization (GLO)

Lata Gangadharan

University of Melbourne - Department of Economics

Pushkar Maitra

Monash University - Department of Economics

Subha Mani

Fordham University - Fordham College at Rose Hill; Population Studies Center; Global Labor Organization (GLO)

Abstract

The goal of this paper is to examine stability in preferences using the Stigler-Becker state-dependent framework. Using a randomized intervention that changes the opportunity sets of individuals we construct a unique panel data from an artefactual field experiment and evaluate whether the change in the state space influences our selected indicators of preferences: risk, competitiveness, and confidence. We find that there is considerable heterogeneity of preferences across individuals at a point in time; risk and competitive preferences inter-temporally are consistent with state-dependent preferences, while measures of confidence seem to depend on past experiences.

Keywords: preference stability, state contingent preferences, artefactual field experiment

JEL Classification: C9, D01, D03

Suggested Citation

Dasgupta, Utteeyo and Gangadharan, Lata and Maitra, Pushkar and Mani, Subha, De Gustibus Non Est Disputandum: An Experimental Investigation. IZA Discussion Paper No. 8579, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2514772

Utteeyo Dasgupta (Contact Author)

Fordham University ( email )

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Lata Gangadharan

University of Melbourne - Department of Economics ( email )

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Pushkar Maitra

Monash University - Department of Economics ( email )

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Subha Mani

Fordham University - Fordham College at Rose Hill ( email )

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Global Labor Organization (GLO) ( email )

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