Learning in sender-receiver games

game theory;learning;testing

Effects of Choice Contrast and Order Sequence on Consumer Judgment and Decision in Comparison- Shopping Assisted Environment

Comparison-Shopping (CS) websites, such as mySimon.com, assist consumers in managing the vast amount of information offered by multiple retailers on the Internet. Conventional wisdom would have dictated that the provision of the best set of alternatives by CS websites should lead to high consumer satisfaction and purchase propensity. However, consumers may experience decision difficulty to choose among alternatives that are nondominated (i.e., none of the alternative is inferior for all product attributes). Consequently, they may simply avoid making a decision by not committing to any purchase. Grounded on behavioral and context-dependent decisionmaking literature, this paper builds a model that explores the effects of choice content and choice order sequence on consumer behavior and explains how they can potentially alleviate the difficulty of making purchase decisions

The UK geography of the E-Society: a national classification

It is simplistic to think of the impacts of new information and communication technologies (ICTs) in terms of a single, or even small number of, 'digital divides'. As developments in what has been termed the ?e-society? reach wider and more generalisedaudiences, so it becomes appropriate to think of digital media as having wider-ranging but differentiated impacts upon consumer transactions, information gathering and citizen participation. This paper describes the development of a detailed, nationwide household classification based on levels of awareness of different ICTs; levels of use of ICTs; andtheir perceived impacts upon human capital formation and the quality of life. It discusses how geodemographic classification makes it possible to provide context for detailed case studies, and hence identify how policy might best improve both the quality and degree ofsociety?s access to ICTs. The primary focus of the paper is methodological, but it alsoillustrates how the classification may be used to investigate a range of regional and subregional policy issues. This paper illustrates the potential contribution of bespoke classifications to evidence-based policy, and the likely benefits of combining the most appropriate methods, techniques, datasets and practices that are used in the public and private sectors. It is simplistic to think of the impacts of new information and communication technologies (ICTs) in terms of a single, or even small number of, 'digital divides'. As developments in what has been termed the ?e-society? reach wider and more generalisedaudiences, so it becomes appropriate to think of digital media as having wider-rangingbut differentiated impacts upon consumer transactions, information gathering and citizen participation. This paper describes the development of a detailed, nationwide household classification based on levels of awareness of different ICTs; levels of use of ICTs; and their perceived impacts upon human capital formation and the quality of life. It discusses how geodemographic classification makes it possible to provide context for detailed case studies, and hence identify how policy might best improve both the quality and degree of society?s access to ICTs. The primary focus of the paper is methodological, but it also illustrates how the classification may be used to investigate a range of regional and subregional policy issues. This paper illustrates the potential contribution of bespoke classifications to evidence-based policy, and the likely benefits of combining the most appropriate methods, techniques, datasets and practices that are used in the public and private sectors

Monetary policy analysis in models without money

Monetary policy

Consumer Preferences and Associated Price Premiums for Agricultural Traits in Maine Markets

In this thesis, I investigate the roles of both consumers and producers in the emergence of traited (i.e. local and organic) goods markets in Maine. I discuss welfare changes after differentiation of the market as well as the impact of changing consumer preferences on market outcomes. The first chapter motivates the emergence of traited goods markets—as consumers try to satisfy their preferences and producers seek to increase incomes. The second chapter explores the market for traited goods in Maine, focusing on the evolution of consumer preferences. A market differentiation framework is used to consider factors that impact total welfare changes in differentiated agricultural markets. The fraction of consumers who transition to the new market, the number of consumers in the market, and the price of the differentiated good are a few of the factors found to influence the magnitude and sign of welfare changes after differentiation. The chapter ends by discussing the costs of production and the decision facing producers when the costs of producing a trait involve substantive production changes. The third chapter of this thesis uses an agent-based model (ABM) to simulate the evolution of consumer preferences through learning. The ABM models a market of consumers who undergo two types of learning (experiential and social) and adjust their preferences according to what they have learned. Consumers make a purchase decision each week based off of their current preferences for a total of 5 years. Results from the simulations show that learning has significant impact on preferences and market outcome. Social learning facilitates the spread of information shocks and general trends. Experiential learning (when set to occur only after an experience with local food), resulted in lower average preferences market-wide because it can result in consumers exiting the local food market but does not provide a pathway for new consumers to enter.. The long-term impact of shocks to the market is found to be related to the level of learning present within the system. With more active learning, the effects of the shocks die out more quickly

Designing product list on E-commerce web sites: The effect of sorting on consumer decision

Ph.DDOCTOR OF PHILOSOPH