We study a model of task completion with the opportunity to learn about own self-control problems over time. While the agent is initially uncertain about her future self-control, in each period she can choose to learn about it by paying a non-negative learning cost and spending one period. If...

Hyperbolic discounting with naiveté is widely believed to provide a better explanation than exponential discounting of why people borrow so much and why they wait so long to save for retirement. We reach a different set of conclusions. We show that if financial planning is enriched to include...

Is the observed large increase in consumer indebtedness since 1970 beneficial for U.S. consumers? This paper quantitatively investigates the macroeconomic and welfare implications of relaxing borrowing constraints using a model with preferences featuring temptation and self-control. The model...

We study optimal contracting by a monopolistic seller of an investment good to a time-inconsistent consumer and, in doing so, introduce asymmetric information to the model of DellaVigna and Malmendier (2004). We find: (1) the below-marginal-cost-pricing rule may fail for a low-value consumer;...

This essay is an introduction to a forthcoming special issue of the Journal of Consumer Policy, on Behavioural Economics, Environmental Policy and the Consumer. It emphasizes that consumer behavior can be greatly affected by the context, which may make it easy or difficult for people to make...

This paper studies the role of goal bracketing to attenuate time inconsistency. When setting non-binding goals for a multi-stage project, an agent must also decide how and when to evaluate himself against such goals. In particular, he can bracket broadly by setting an aggregate goal for the...

The study tries to recognize the behaviour of the consumer with respect to the opportunity cost and marginal benefit associated with the commodity. The research tries to evaluate the factors and identify behavioural traits of consumers if they exist in decision making. The study also tries to...

The access to credit is generally seen as an important ingredient for development. However, over the last years reports on families contracting excessive debt and falling into credit traps have also increased. In this paper I develop a model of family credit behavior based on insights from...

The study tries to recognize the behavior of the consumer with respect to the opportunity cost and marginal benefit associated with the commodity. The research tries to evaluate the factors and identify behavioral traits of consumers if they exist in decision making. The study also tries to...

We study in an online, real-effort experiment how the bracketing of non-binding goals affects performance in a work-leisure self-control problem. We externally induce the goal bracket - daily goals or a weekly goal - and within that bracket let subjects set goals for how much they want to work...