Self-Image, Self-Signaling, and the Socially Adapted Mind

Arnaud Wolff

Review of Behavioral Economics, 2025, vol. 12, issue 1, 69-96

Abstract: Recent work in behavioral economics has suggested that individuals derive utility from the beliefs that they hold. The objective of this paper is to reevaluate the idea that (i) individuals care about their self-image and (ii) individuals self-signal. I first argue that the desired self-image is best seen as the desired reputation. Then, I defend the idea that what appears to be self-signaling in the laboratory reflects the workings of a psychology well-adapted to the social incentives of everyday life, which spills over when individuals find themselves in new, contrived environments.

Date: 2025
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