Random Utility with Unobservable Alternatives

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Kono, Haruki, Saito, Kota, Sandroni, Alec
Format: Preprint
Published: 2023
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author Kono, Haruki
Saito, Kota
Sandroni, Alec
author_facet Kono, Haruki
Saito, Kota
Sandroni, Alec
contents The random utility model, a cornerstone in economics, is axiomatized by Falmagne (1978) and McFadden and Richter (1990) with the assumption that if a menu is observable, the choice frequencies of all alternatives are also observable. However, in practice, it is common for choice frequencies of some alternatives to remain unobserved. To address this discrepancy, we obtain the testable implications of the random utility model when the choice frequencies of some alternatives are unobservable, which consist of nonredundant inequality constraints on observed choice frequencies. Our findings indicate that the widespread empirical practice of aggregating unobserved alternatives into a single "outside option" fails to capture significant implications of random utility models.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2302_03913
institution arXiv
publishDate 2023
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Random Utility with Unobservable Alternatives
Kono, Haruki
Saito, Kota
Sandroni, Alec
Theoretical Economics
The random utility model, a cornerstone in economics, is axiomatized by Falmagne (1978) and McFadden and Richter (1990) with the assumption that if a menu is observable, the choice frequencies of all alternatives are also observable. However, in practice, it is common for choice frequencies of some alternatives to remain unobserved. To address this discrepancy, we obtain the testable implications of the random utility model when the choice frequencies of some alternatives are unobservable, which consist of nonredundant inequality constraints on observed choice frequencies. Our findings indicate that the widespread empirical practice of aggregating unobserved alternatives into a single "outside option" fails to capture significant implications of random utility models.
title Random Utility with Unobservable Alternatives
topic Theoretical Economics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2302.03913