Finding Common Ground: a Semi-parametric Approach to Identifying Preference Heterogeneity
Heterogeneity in preferences is important in many domains. However, many existing approaches to studying this phenomenon empirically come with trade-offs for the researcher. For example, parametric approaches often cannot be falsified or distinguish between the predictions of other models. Additionally, while revealed preference methods may identify the existence of a set of types, further economic analysis can be difficult to perform due to the non-parametric nature of these approaches. To complement such methods, this paper introduces a semi-parametric approach to studying preference heterogeneity that is grounded in economic theory, generates falsifiable empirical predictions, and yields economic content beyond a yes/no identification of diverse preferences. I present several empirical applications to demonstrate the advantages of this approach.
Date:
17 November 2022, 15:00 (Thursday, 6th week, Michaelmas 2022)
Venue:
Manor Road Building, Manor Road OX1 3UQ
Venue Details:
Skills Lab
Speaker:
Hubert Wu (University of Oxford)
Organising department:
Department of Economics
Booking required?:
Not required
Audience:
Members of the University only
Editor:
Emma Lane
