Cognitive Dissonance as a Means of Reducing Hypothetical Bias

Frode Alfnes, Chengyan Yue and Helen H. Jensen

No 47737, Hebrew University of Jerusalem Archive from Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Abstract: Hypothetical bias is a persistent problem in stated preference studies. We propose and test a method for reducing hypothetical bias based on the cognitive dissonance literature in social psychology. A central element of this literature is that people prefer not to take inconsistent stands and will change their attitudes and behavior to make them consistent. We find that participants in a stated preference willingness-to-pay study, when told that a nonhypothetical study of similar goods would follow, state significantly lower willingness to pay than participants not so informed. In other words, participants adjust their stated willingness to pay to avoid cognitive dissonance from taking inconsistent stands on their willingness to pay for the good being offered.

Pages: 40
Date: 2009-02
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ags:hebarc:47737

DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.47737

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