An Economic Approach to the Self: the Dual Agent

Aïleen Lotz

MPRA Paper from University Library of Munich, Germany

Abstract: This paper extends the notion of the rational agent in economics by acknowledging the role of the unconscious in the agent's decision-making process. It argues that the unconscious can be modelled by a rational agent with his own objective function and set of information. The combination of both the conscious and unconscious agents is called the "dual agent". This dual agent presents rationally biased behaviors that may not disappear through aggregation, and could be potentially measured. It also provides a theoretical approach to the emotionally-driven actions. On the social sciences side, the paper pleads for a wider use of substantive rationality in the understanding of human behavior.

Keywords: rational agent; decision-making; conscious; unconscious; asymmetry of information; imperfect information; dual agent; theory of emotion; substantive and procedural rationality; psychology; bias (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: B41 D01 D81 D82 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2011-02-15
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (11)

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Related works:
Working Paper: An Economic Approach To The Self: The Dual Agent (2019)
Working Paper: An Economic Approach to the Self: the Dual Agent (2011)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:pra:mprapa:50771

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