Can Optimism be a Remedy for Present Bias?
研究了在消费者具有双曲线偏好(当下偏好)的经济中,乐观(对未来生产力的过度预期)能否改善资本错配问题,发现适度乐观可提升福利,而悲观总是有害。
Abstract Under economies with hyperbolic preferences, vast research has investigated welfare‐improving tax policies to resolve capital misallocation issues. In this paper, we suggests an alternative channel to overcome a form of this issue associated with consumer's present bias—optimism, as defined by overexpectation of future productivity. We show that even though optimism negatively impacts consumers under normal circumstances, a moderate level of it can be beneficial when consumers have hyperbolic preferences. On the other hand, pessimism always negatively impacts consumer welfare. A steady‐state analysis shows that the quantitative impact of optimism on welfare can be sizable.