We present an alternative expectation formation mechanism that helps rationalize well known asset pricing anomalies, such as the predictability of excess returns, excess volatility, and the equity-premium puzzle. As with rational expectations (RE), the expectation formation mechanism we consider...

This paper surveys the field of asset pricing. The emphasis is on the interplay between theory and empirical work, and on the tradeoff between risk and return. Modern research seeks to understand the behavior of the stochastic discount factor (SDF) that prices all assets in the economy. The...

The Euler equations of consumption are tested on the household consumption of non-durables and services, reconstructed from the CEX database. The estimated relative risk aversion coefficient of the representative household decreases, and the estimated unexplained mean equity premium decreases,...

We propose a new framework for pricing assets, derived in part from the traditional consumption-based approach, but which also incorporates two long-standing ideas in psychology: prospect theory, and evidence on how prior outcomes affect risky choice. Consistent with prospect theory, the...

We study the asset pricing implications of an economy where solvency constraints are determined to efficiently deter agents from defaulting. We present a simple example for which efficient allocations and all equilibrium elements are characterized analytically. The main model produces large...

Estimation and testing of factor models in asset pricing requires choosing a set of test assets. The choice of test assets determines how well different factor risk premia can be identified: if only few assets are exposed to a factor, that factor is weak, which makes standard estimation and...

We propose a comprehensive measure of systematic risk for corporate bonds as a nonlinear function of robust risk factors and find a significantly positive link between systematic risk and the time-series and cross-section of future bond returns. We also find a positive but insignificant relation...

Labor market frictions are crucial for the equity premium in production economies. A dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model with recursive utility, search frictions, and capital accumulation yields a high equity premium of 4.26% per annum, a stock market volatility of 11.8%, and a low...

We develop and implement asymptotic theory to conduct inference on continuous-time asset pricing models using individual equity returns sampled at high frequencies over an increasing time horizon. We study the identification and estimation of risk premia for the continuous and jump components of...

The currency market features a relatively small cross-section and conditional expected returns can be characterized by only a few signals - interest differentials, trend, and mean-reversion. We exploit these properties to construct a conditional projection of the stochastic discount factor onto...