‘CHOOSE TO BE OPTIMISTIC,IT FEELS BETTER?’ EVIDENCE OF OPTIMISM ON EMPLOYMENT UTILITY

Individual's expected wages exceed predicted market wages. Rational expectations imply the divergence should be zero. If individuals over‐estimate the return from their attributes and view the paid‐employment return distribution too favourably, then conditional on market wages, subsequent employment utility is likely to be low through disappointment.     

Expected utility theory with imprecise probability perception: explaining preference reversals

This article presents a new model for decision-making under risk, which provides an explanation for empirically-observed preference reversals. Central to the theory is the incorporation of probability perception imprecision, which arises because of individuals’ vague understanding of numerical probabilities. We combine this concept with the use of the Alpha EU model and construct a simple model which helps us to understand anomalies, such as preference reversals and valuation gaps, discovered in the experimental economics literature, that standard models cannot explain.