In a message dated 10/24/02 10:51:12 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: << This is always the response of mainstream economists when one points out that people obviously are not behaving as models predict. Unfortunately, for a lot of people that is where the discussion stops. The assumption seems to be that all one has to do is add an error term to the prediction of the standard model and all the rest of the results about optimality etc. go through approximately. I think in a lot of cases that isn't right. Fifteen years ago I was relatively lonely in making this assertion and trying to systematically work out the implications of various types of irrationality. Today I've got a lot more company. Economists in general would do well to note that for a wide range of policy questions approximately rational is a far cry from fully rational and to think carefully about the implications of less than full rationality for problems they are working on. - - Bill >>
A lack of information hardly indicates a lack of goal-pursuit (rationality) nor, I suspect, would many "mainstream economists" be surprised to find that young people on average have a level of rational ignorance than adults. DBL GMU
