Tag: behavioural economics

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Why we buy what we buy

Behavioural economics looks at the way in which people behave when making economic decisions about spending. It looks essentially and what people buy and why they buy it. Research in behavioural economics has started to question some of the traditional economic assumptions of rationality and argues that habits and other psychological factors may be more important than conventionally assumed.

Why we buy what we buy Guardian (20/5/08)

Questions

1. Explain what is meant by ‘behavioural economics’.
2. Evaluate the principal factors that people take into account when choosing to buy a consumer good.
3. “….. average people are all far more irrational and more human than economists allow”. Discuss the extent to which this might be true.
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More expensive cigarettes = happier smokers

In the article below Tim Harford (the Undercover Economist) looks at rationality in the purchase of cigarettes. He consider whether healthy and happy smokers are the same thing and the extent to which smokers would be happier if cigarettes were more expensive.

Why smokers are happier when cigarettes cost more MSN Slate (17/5/08)

Questions

1. Identify the principal factors that determine the level of demand for cigarettes.
2. Given the factors identified in part (a), discuss the likely value of the price elasticity of demand for cigarettes.
3. Discuss the extent to which higher cigarette prices would make smokers happier.
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Can economics make you a better person?

The start of a new year is a time that many of us make New Year Resolutions. Generally we have broken these before then end of January, but a new web site called Stickk.com aims to helps us keep the resolutions. Can economics help us rationalise the process of making resolutions? In the article below Tim Harford (the Undercover Economist) looks at incentives and what economics can tell us about New Year Resolutions.

Rationalising resolutions MSN Slate (22/12/07)

Questions

1. Assess the importance of incentives in determining people’s economic behaviour.
2. How does the analysis of ‘rational behaviour’ help us understand the economic choices people make?
3. Discuss the likely success of the business model developed by Stickk.com.