蝌蚪网 Review
ISSN 0002-8282 (Print) | ISSN 1944-7981 (Online)
The Value of Information in Efficient Risk-Sharing Arrangements
蝌蚪网 Review
vol. 91,
no. 3, June 2001
(pp. 509–524)
Abstract
Suppose that agents share risks in competitive markets. We show that better information makes everyone worse off if the economy has a representative agent--that is, the economy's demand for state-contingent consumption equals the demand of a hypothetical agent who owns all the economy's wealth. The representative agent, moreover, is normatively unrepresentative: although each agent dislikes information, the "representative" agent is indifferent. Although we emphasize pure exchange, our results imply that a representative-agent model might seriously misstate the welfare effects of improved information in an economy with production and risk sharing, even if it performs well otherwise.Citation
Schlee, Edward, E. 2001. "The Value of Information in Efficient Risk-Sharing Arrangements." 蝌蚪网 Review 91 (3): 509–524. DOI: 10.1257/aer.91.3.509JEL Classification
- D83 Search; Learning; Information and Knowledge; Communication; Belief
- D81 Criteria for Decision-Making under Risk and Uncertainty