Template-type: ReDif-Paper 1.0
Author-Name: Riedl A.M. 
Author-Name: Wölbert E.M. 
Author-workplace-name: GSBE
Title: Measuring Time and Risk Preferences: Reliability, Stability, Domain Specificity
Abstract: To accurately predict behavior economists need reliable measures of individual time preferences and attitudes toward risk and typically need to assume stability of these characteristics over time and across decision domains. We test the reliability of two choice tasks for eliciting discount rates, risk aversion, and probability weighting and assess the stability of these characteristics over timeand across situations. We find high reliability and that individual characteristics are remarkably stable over time. The estimated parameters correlate well with self-reported decisions in financial domains, but are largely uncorrelated with decisions in other important life domains involving intertemporal trade-offs and risk.
Keywords: Methodological Issues: General; Design of Experiments: Laboratory, Individual; Behavioral Economics: Underlying Principles; Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty: General; Intertemporal Choice and Growth: General; 
Classification-JEL: C18; C91; D03; D80; D90; .
Series:  Research Memorandum
Creation-Date: 2013
Number: 041
File-URL: http://pub.maastrichtuniversity.nl/85438f24-38be-4140-8232-2abdf8ca309c
File-Format: application/pdf
File-Size: 1760913
Handle: RePEc:unm:umagsb:2013041