This paper introduces state dependent utility into the standard Mehra and Prescott (1985) economy by allowing the representative agents coefficient of relative risk aversion to vary with the underlying economys growth rate. Existence of equilibrium is proved and its asymptotic properties...

Does it make us unhappier when we compare our consumptionwith that of the Joneses or our own past achievements? This paper tries ananswer by bringing together two disparate literatures: the macro (growth)theory on habit formation and the applied literature related to the Easterlinparadox. Using...

We prove that for any incomplete market and any concave utilityfunction the marginal propensities to consume and to save are alwayspositive. Furthermore, we introduce a class of incomplete markets thatincludes almost all well known examples of market incompleteness infinance and macroeconomics....

The fact that members of an immigrant community may have different demographiccharacteristics, or may have different tastes, to the indigenous population, may manifestitself in differences in saving behaviour. In addition, depending on their ethnicbackground, there could be differences among the...

The aim of this study is to examine the underlying dimensions of self-stated attitudesand behaviour concerning everyday financial affairs, and classify individuals basedon those dimensions. A questionnaire was answered by 1282 respondents in the German-speaking part of Switzerland. The sample of...