Risk Exposure and Acquisition of Macroeconomic Information

Christopher Roth, Sonja Settele () and Johannes Wohlfahrt ()
Additional contact information
Sonja Settele: Department of Economics and CEBI, University of Copenhagen, Øster Farimagsgade 5, Building 351353 Copenhagen K,
Johannes Wohlfahrt: Department of Economics and CEBI, University of Copenhagen, Øster Farimagsgade 5, Building 351353 Copenhagen K

No 177, ECONtribute Discussion Papers Series from University of Bonn and University of Cologne, Germany

Abstract: We conduct an experiment with a representative sample from the US to study households’ demand for macroeconomic information. Respon-dents who learn of a higher personal exposure to unemployment risk during recessions increase their demand for an expert forecast about the likelihood of a recession. This finding is consistent with macroeconomic models of endogenous information acquisition, according to which the demand for information depends on its expected benefits. Moreover, re-spondents’ updating about their personal unemployment risk suggests that households are imperfectly informed about their exposure to aggre-gate fluctuations, which may distort their beliefs about the benefits of acquiring macroeconomic information.

Keywords: Risk Exposure; Macroeconomic Conditions; Information Acquisition; Experiment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D12 D14 D83 D84 E32 G11 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 23 pages
Date: 2022-07
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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https://www.econtribute.de/RePEc/ajk/ajkdps/ECONtribute_177_2022.pdf First version, 2022 (application/pdf)

Related works:
Journal Article: Risk Exposure and Acquisition of Macroeconomic Information (2022)
Working Paper: Risk Exposure and Acquisition of Macroeconomic Information (2021)
Working Paper: Risk Exposure and Acquisition of Macroeconomic Information (2021)
Working Paper: Risk Exposure and Acquisition of Macroeconomic Information (2020)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ajk:ajkdps:177

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