Based on two popular theoretical frameworks regarding media choices of rational choice and social influence (Markus 1987; Trevino et al. 2000) the main theme of this paper is to investigate applicability of these frameworks on a case where the pattern in usage and collective meaning of a medium is shaped in the cultural context. Focusing on the phenomenon of many Asians preferring not to send e...

Consumers often know what kind of product they wish to purchase, but do not know which speci...c variant best ...ts their needs, so consumers shop around. As a result, a consumer may ...nd an acceptable product in one store but nevertheless purchase nothing, opting to continue searching for an even better product. We study three versions of the retail assortment problem: a traditional, no-searc...

What is meant by uncertainty? Presumably it is a term that has been used in a variety of ways. The present article focuses on some of the interesting relations between uncertainty and both pragmatist philosophy and rational choice theory. Section 2 is concerned primarily with the ways that uncertainty has been accommodated in the study of rational choice and, in particular, the ways in which at...

We introduce a money demand motive in a life-cycle portfolio choice model and estimate the structural parameters that can generate limited stock market participation and plausible holdings of money, bonds and stocks. The model predicts an increase in bond holdings over the life cycle, and a declining share of money in portfolios as wealth increases. Both predictions are consistent with the data...

A large experimental and empirical literature on asymmetric dominance and attraction effects shows that the probability that an alternative is chosen can increase if additional alternatives become available. Hence context matters and choices and, therefore, market shares can not be accurately described by standard choice models where individuals choose the alternative that yields the highest ut...

While political conflicts have been extensively studied by political scientists, criminal conflicts have received much less attention, especially by theorists in the field. Focusing on the latter type of conflict, we address why an individual crime across an ethnic or tribal border often leads to large-scale violence. Building on rational choice theory, we present three hypothetical mechanisms ...

We explore issues in theory-driven choice modeling by focusing on partial-equilibrium models of dynamic structural demand with forward-looking decision-makers, full equilibrium models that integrate the supply side, integration of bounded rationality in dynamic structural models of choice and public policy implications of these models.

The uncertain option task has been recently adopted to investigate the neural systems underlying the decision confidence. Latterly single neurons activity has been recorded in lateral intraparietal cortex of monkeys performing an uncertain option task, where the subject is allowed to opt for a small but sure reward instead of making a risky perceptual decision. We propose a multiple choice mode...

We propose a number of heuristics that can be used for identifying when intransitive choice behaviour is likely to occur in choice situations. We also suggest two methods for avoiding undesired choice behaviour, namely transparent communication and adaptive choice-set generation. We believe that these two ways can contribute to the avoidance of decision biases in choice situations that may ofte...

We formulate a model of preferences with non-addictive habits, where consumption is required to be non-negative at all times, but is allowed to fall below a “standard of living” index that aggregates past consumption. In this context we study the consumption-portfolio choice problem taking account of the non-negativity constraint on consumption, and provide a constructive proof for the existenc...