Laboratory evidence shows that when people have to argue for a given position, they persuade themselves about the position’s factual and moral superiority. Such self-persuasion limits potential of communication resolve conflict reduce polarization. We test this phenomenon in field setting, at international debating competitions randomly assign experienced motivated debaters one side topical mot...

We analyze how voluntary disclosure of information by bidders affects the outcome optimally designed auctions. In a single-object auction environment, we assume that before revenue-maximizing auctioneer designs auction, noncooperatively choose signal structures disclose about their valuations. show an equilibrium exists in this two-stage game and every object is sold with probability one. Our m...

How important is access to patent documents for subsequent innovation? We examine the expansion of USPTO Patent Library system after 1975. libraries provided patents before Internet. find that library opening, local patenting increases by 8–20 percent relative similar regions. Additional analyses suggest disclosure technical information drives this effect: inventors increasingly take up ideas f...

A principal seeks to persuade an agent accept offer of uncertain value before a deadline expires. The can generate information, but exerts no control over exogenous outside information. combined effect the and information creates incentives for keep uncertainty high in first periods so as close deadline. We characterize equilibrium, compare it single-player decision problem which is agent’s onl...

We characterize the revenue-maximizing information structure in second-price auction. The seller faces a trade-off: more improves efficiency of allocation but creates higher rents for bidders. disclosure policy that maximizes revenue is to fully reveal low values (where competition high) pool high low). size determined by critical quantile independent distribution and only dependent on number d...

We discuss the characteristics of investment decisions and identify the factors that affect consumers’ information search behavior when they make investment decisions. Using the 2000 to 2001 MacroMonitor data set, we find that subjective knowledge, amount of investment, risk tolerance, age, education, and income influence both the extent of information search and the use of specific information...

The data in Fehr and Tyran (2001) and Petersen and Winn (2014) show that money illusion plays an important role in nominal price adjustment after a fully anticipated negative monetary shock. Money illusion affects subjects’ expectations, and causes pronounced nominal inertia after a negative shock but much less inertia after a positive shock. Thus Petersen and Winn (2014) provide a misleading i...

Drawing a conclusion from recent insights in evolutionary game theory, we show that a so-called spite e!ect implies that there is an essential di!erence between individual and social learning. We illustrate its consequences for the choice of computational tools in economics and social settings in general by analyzing two variants of a Genetic Algorithm. ( 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights r...