Strategic Ignorance and the Perceived Efficacy of Taking Action
通过印度和美国的实验，研究了提高个体对行动有效性的信念（即认为自己的行动能影响结果）是否会减少其策略性忽视有用但令人痛苦的信息，结果发现提高有效性感知能显著改善信息回忆，尤其对乐观者效果更明显。
Abstract When useful information is distressing, it may deliberately be ignored. In this paper, we examine both theoretically and experimentally whether increasing perceived efficacy — the belief that one’s actions can influence an outcome — reduces such strategic ignorance. Participants in India are given the choice to receive or avoid information about the average loss in life expectancy due to air pollution in their district and are later asked to recall it. We find that increasing perceived efficacy significantly improves recall, particularly among participants with optimistic prior beliefs. The pattern is confirmed when conducting the same experiment in the United States. Our theoretical framework highlights how perceived efficacy shapes the interplay between anticipatory and realized utility, thereby influencing strategic ignorance.