Behavioral Economic Analysis Research Articles

Diurnal Variation in Motivation, Cocaine Value, and In Vivo Dopamine Release

Circadian rhythms have been shown to influence a number of psychiatric disorders, like substance use disorder (SUD). For example, individuals with evening chronotypes (i.e. night owls) express higher vulnerability to drug‐craving and drug‐taking behaviors.Similarly, the mesolimbic dopamine (DA) system, which is an essential circuit in these behaviors, exhibits diurnal rhythms in activity and function. Although diurnal rhythms have been documented in both drug‐taking and DA dynamics, it remains unclear whether these variations in DA confer with variations in‐drug taking. Here, we utilized in vivo fast scan cyclic voltammetry and a behavioral economic analysis of cocaine self‐administration to examine time‐of‐day variations in in vivo DA release, motivation, and cocaine value. We hypothesize that the degree to which the magnitude of mesolimbic DA release in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) varies across time will correspond diurnal variations found in motivation to take cocaine. We found that in vivo DA release was increased across the dark cycle in comparison to time‐points in the light cycle. We found no difference in cocaine intake in rats across time‐of‐day when cocaine “cost” was low and easy to obtain (Q0). However, we found that rats in the mid‐point of their dark cycles were more persistent in maintaining high cocaine intake as the “cost” or effort to maintain blood‐levels increased within their session in comparison to rats midway through their light cycle. These novel data suggest that specific time‐points across the dark cycle are associated with corresponding increases in DA and motivation to self‐administer cocaine under high, but no low, cost conditions. Understanding this dynamic modulation of diurnal variations may provide another therapeutic avenue for the circadian intervention of SUDs as well as target time‐points at which current pharmacotherapies might be most effective.

A behavioral economics analysis of the participation in early childhood development social programs promoted by civil societies in Mexico.

Based on a behavioral economics (BE) approach, we analyzed the decision to participate in an early childhood development (ECD) program implemented in Mexico by a non-governmental organization. We conducted a literature review and a qualitative study of four localities participating in the ECD program. Situated in the state of Oaxaca, these communities are characterized by high and very high levels of social marginalization. From May 20 to 30, 2019, we collected primary data through semi-structured interviews (n = 30) and focus groups (n = 7) with a total of 61 informants (51 women and 10 men). We then performed an inductive systematic analysis of the data to identify documented cognitive bias associated with the decisions of individuals to participate and remain in or abandon social programs. The interviewees were living in conditions of poverty, facing difficulties in meeting even their most basic needs including food. Program participants attached far greater weight to incentives such as the basic food basket than to the other benefits offered by the program. The four localities visited maintained traditional views of domestic roles and practices, particularly regarding child-rearing, where women were in charge of childcare, home care and food preparation. Problems linked to child malnutrition were a decisive factor in the decision of residents to participate and remain in the program. Testimonials gathered during the study demonstrated that the longer the mothers remained in the program, the more they understood and adopted the concepts promoted by the interventions. In contexts marked by economic vulnerability, it is essential that ECD programs create the necessary conditions for maximizing the benefits they offer. Our analysis suggests that cognitive load and present bias were the biases that most severely affected the decision-making capacity of beneficiaries. Therefore, considering loss aversion and improving the management of incentives can help policymakers design actions that "nudge" people into making the kinds of decisions that contribute to their well-being.

The marketing‐finance interface and national well‐being: An operant behavioral economics analysis

The research ascertains which countries' well‐being metrics moderate the effects of marketing investments on corporate financial outcomes. We applied generalized estimating equations to firms in panel data from 131 countries covering 18 years. The results show that marketing investments raise market share regardless of country context, a global pattern. However, their effects are greater when considering economic growth. The impact of marketing on profitability and the companies' value increases when the country improves income distribution. The countries' developments generate higher financial outcomes, regardless of marketing investments. We highlight firsthand the global marketing–finance interface in its macro‐environment, using operant behavioral economics.

A behavioral economic analysis of smartwatches using internet‐based hypothetical demand

Hypothetical purchase tasks (HPTs) and operant demand analyses provide a promising methodology to determine how consumers value new products. This study used a demand analysis to determine value differences between Apple or Fitbit smartwatches and those same watches with hypothetical “added‐value” features. There were no differences between baseline smartwatches and those with additional features. However, participants who owned Apple products had significantly higher demand for Apple smartwatches, while this difference did not exist for Fitbit users. HPTs and demand analyses were sensitive enough to determine differences related to brand loyalty, but did not detect differences in added‐value of hypothetical features.

Decreased excitability of leptin-sensitive anterior insula pyramidal neurons in a rat model of compulsive food demand

Compulsive eating is an overlapping construct with binge eating that shares many characteristics with substance use disorders. Compulsive eating may impact millions of Americans; presenting in some cases of binge eating disorders, overweight/obesity, and among individuals who have not yet been diagnosed with a recognized eating disorder. To study the behavioral and neurobiological underpinnings of compulsive eating, we employ a published rodent model using cyclic intermittent access to a palatable diet to develop a self-imposed binge-withdrawal cycle. Here, we further validated this model of compulsive eating in female Wistar rats, through the lens of behavioral economic analyses and observed heightened demand intensity, inelasticity and essential value as well as increased food-seeking during extinction. Using electrophysiological recordings in the anterior insular cortex, a region previously implicated in modulating compulsive-like eating in intermittent access models, we observed functional adaptations of pyramidal neurons. Within the same neurons, application of leptin led to further functional adaptations, suggesting a previously understudied, extrahypothalamic role of leptin in modulating feeding-related cortical circuits. Collectively, the findings suggest that leptin may modulate food-related motivation or decision-making via a plastic cortical circuit that is influenced by intermittent access to a preferred diet. These findings warrant further study of whether behavioral economics analysis of compulsive eating can impact disordered eating outcomes in humans and of the translational relevance of a leptin-sensitive anterior insular circuit implicated in these behaviors.

A behavioral-economic analysis of demand and preference for social and food reinforcement in rats

Prior research has shown that responding can be maintained under concurrent food and social reinforcement in rats, but little is known about interactions between these reinforcers. In the present study, we approached the problem from a behavioral-economic perspective, using demand-curve methods to analyze demand for, and interactions between, food and social reinforcement. Four rats were given repeated choices between food and 10-s of social access to a partner rat on concurrent schedules, with social access arranged by lifting a door to a restraint, within which the partner rat was held. The fixed-ratio prices of the food and social interaction were varied, separately or together, generating within-subject demand functions. Demand for both food and social interaction decreased with increases in their own price (own-price elasticity), though food reinforcers were more robust (higher levels of consumption at the lowest price) and less sensitive to price (less elastic) than was social interaction. Demand for a constant-price of social interaction increased with increases in the price of food (positive cross-price elasticity), suggesting a substitutable relationship. Demand for a constant-price of food did not change with increases in the price of social access, suggesting no reinforcer interaction. Demand for food alone was less elastic than demand for food in the presence of social reinforcement opportunities, showing that value of food is modified by the presence and availability of social reinforcement. The results provide further evidence of the reinforcing value of social interaction, and how it is modified by the broader economic context in which it occurs, including the price and availability of qualitatively different reinforcers of higher value.

Behavioral economic analysis of topiramate pharmacotherapy for alcohol: a placebo-controlled investigation of effects on alcohol reinforcing value and delayed reward discounting.

Pharmacotherapies are an important clinical strategy for treating alcohol use disorder and an understanding of their functional mechanisms can inform optimal use. Behavioral economics provides a translational platform that may advance our understanding of the motivational impacts of pharmacotherapies. This secondary analysis study examined the effect of topiramate, a promising pharmacotherapy for treating alcohol use disorder, on two behavioral economic domains, the reinforcing value of alcohol (alcohol demand and alcohol-specific monetary expenditures) and delayed reward discounting (preference for smaller immediate rewards over larger delayed rewards). A double-blind randomized placebo-controlled study (n = 99) was conducted with non-treatment seeking heavy drinkers, comparing topiramate (target dose of 200mg/day titrated for 3weeks and remained at the target dose for 2weeks) to matched placebo. We found that compared to placebo, topiramate reduced the reinforcing value of alcohol, as shown by a reduction in two alcohol demand indices (intensity and Omax), money spent per week on alcohol and an almost a 50% increase in days without expenditures on alcohol from baseline. Directionally consistent patterns were also present for breakpoint and elasticity (ps = .08). No significant effects were found for delayed reward discounting. This study provides evidence that topiramate reduces alcohol's reinforcing value as measured by alcohol demand and alcohol expenditure. More broadly, these findings support the utility of behavioral economics for understanding how medications reduce alcohol use.

A Behavioural Economics Analysis of Will Making Preferences: When to Begin and Who Should Have the Most Input?

A Behavioural Economics Analysis of Will Making Preferences: When to Begin and Who Should Have the Most Input?

Prospects for Zero Carbon Flight: A Behavioural Economic Analysis of Consumer Preferences for Sustainable Aviation

Prospects for Zero Carbon Flight: A Behavioural Economic Analysis of Consumer Preferences for Sustainable Aviation

Ensuring Effective Public Health Communication: Insights and Modeling Efforts From Theories of Behavioral Economics, Heuristics, and Behavioral Analysis for Decision Making Under Risk.

Public health (PH) messaging can have an enormous impact on shaping how individuals within society behave, and can ensure it is in a safe and responsible way, consistent with up-to-date evidence-based PH guidelines. If done effectively, messaging can save lives and improve the health of those within society. However, unfortunately, those within Government PH bodies typically have little training about how to effectively represent PH messages in a way that is consistent with psychological theories of cognitive bias, in order to avoid cognitively biasing the public through their messages. As a result of this, inadequate representation of PH messages can result, which can often lead to cognitive bias in those from the public who read or listen to the message information. This can lead to poor decision making of the pubic as a whole, which can then further lead to harm and even death of public members as a result of these poor decisions. One way to minimize the problem of bias in decision making is to explore psychology theories that model how bias can occur from PH messaging, and identify ways in which PH agencies can utilize such approaches to improve the effectiveness of their messages. Previous focus has been largely on behavioral economic theories, however, here, other accounts are offered in addition to these. These include theories of heuristics and theories from the behavior analysis domain, which may increase the predictive power of modeling bias, and have applications for how best to represent PH message information which minimize bias.

A Law and Behavioural Economics Analysis of High-Cost Lending in New Zealand

The most interesting recent developments in economics have come from behavioural economics, which attempts to model how people will behave in real life situations. The insights offered by behavioural economics can also be applied to law. This article discusses law and behavioural economics generally, and then applies it to the New Zealand high-cost loan industry. The high-cost loan industry is responsible for a great deal of harm in New Zealand, and in 2019 Parliament passed sweeping amendments to the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act 2003 to insulate consumers from that harm. Law and behavioural economics suggest alternative strategies to those amendments that can address the harms while retaining the benefits that high-cost loans can provide. This article designed an experimental survey to test one such strategy, and the results and implications for policy are discussed.

Pregnancy Clauses

Pregnancy Clauses

Identifying Patterns of Alcohol Use and Obesity-Related Factors Among Emerging Adults: A Behavioral Economic Analysis.

Although heavy alcohol consumption and maladaptive eating behaviors have been shown to co-occur among college students, less is known about the co-occurrence of these behaviors in a more diverse community-dwelling, emerging adult sample. The purpose of this study was to: (i) identify classes of emerging adults by their reported alcohol consumption patterns, food addiction symptoms, and body mass index; and (ii) determine whether these classes differed on indices of behavioral economic reinforcer pathology (e.g., environmental reward deprivation, impulsivity, alcohol demand). Emerging adult participants were recruited as part of a study on risky alcohol use (n=602; 47% white, 41.5% Black; mean age=22.63, SD=1.03). Participants completed questionnaires on alcohol and food-related risk factors and underwent anthropometric assessment. Latent profile analysis suggested a four-profile solution: a moderate alcohol severity, overweight profile (Profile 1; n=424, 70.4%), a moderate alcohol severity, moderate food addiction+obese profile (Profile 2; n=93, 15.4%), a high alcohol severity, high food addiction+obese profile (Profile 3; n=44, 7.3%), and a high alcohol severity, overweight profile (Profile 4; n=41, 6.8%). Individuals in Profile 1 reported significantly lower levels of environmental reward deprivation than either Profile 2 or 3, and participants in Profile 3 reported significantly higher environmental reward deprivation than those in Profile 4 (p<0.001). Profile 4 demonstrated significantly higher alcohol demand intensity and Omax and lower demand elasticity than Profile 1, Profile 2, or Profile 3. Profile 4 also demonstrated significantly greater proportionate substance-related reinforcement than Profile 1 (p<0.001) and Profile 2 (p=0.004). Maladaptive eating patterns and alcohol consumption may share common risk factors for reinforcer pathology including environmental reward deprivation, impulsivity, and elevated alcohol demand.

Antonios Karampatzos, Private Law, Nudging and Behavioral Economic Analysis. The Mandated-Choice Model, (London: Taylor & Francis, 2020) pp. 188, ISBN: 978-1003014652

Article Antonios Karampatzos, Private Law, Nudging and Behavioral Economic Analysis. The Mandated-Choice Model, (London: Taylor & Francis, 2020) pp. 188, ISBN: 978-1003014652 was published on April 1, 2021 in the journal European Review of Contract Law (volume 17, issue 1).

Reinforcing effects of synthetic cathinones in rhesus monkeys: Dose-response and behavioral economic analyses

The abuse of synthetic cathinones (“bath salts”) with psychomotor stimulant and/or entactogenic properties emerged as a public health concern when they were introduced as “legal” alternatives to drugs of abuse such as cocaine or MDMA. In this study, experiments were conducted in nonhuman primates to examine how differences in transporter selectivity might impact the reinforcing effects of synthetic cathinones. Rhesus monkeys (N = 5) were trained to respond for intravenous injections under a fixed-ratio (FR) 30, timeout 60-s schedule of reinforcement. The reinforcing effects of selected cathinones (e.g., MDPV, αPVP, MCAT, and methylone) with a range of pharmacological effects at dopamine and serotonin transporters were compared to cocaine and MDMA using dose-response analysis under a simple FR schedule and behavioral economic procedures that generated demand curves for two doses of each drug. Results show that one or more doses of all drugs were readily self-administered in each subject and, excepting MDMA (21 injections/session), peak levels of self-administration were similar across drugs (between 30 and 40 injections/session). Demand elasticity for the peak and the peak + 1/2-log dose of each drug did not significantly differ, and when data for the two doses were averaged for each drug, the following rank-order of reinforcing strength emerged: cocaine > MCAT = MDPV = methylone > αPVP = MDMA. These results indicate that the reinforcing strength of synthetic cathinones are not related to their selectivity in binding dopamine or serotonin transporter sites.

Behavioral Economic Analysis of Demand for Hypothetical Work Performance: A Partial Replication

Operant behavioral economics is a field that analyzes human decision making by combining concepts of behavioral psychology and consumer demand theory. A relatively new and effective method of collecting data in behavioral economics is the hypothetical purchase task (HPT), which reveals consumers’ demand for a commodity as price increases by asking participants to respond to hypothetical situations rather than having them work for and consume the commodity. Henley, Reed, Kaplan, and Reed (2016) extended the HPT to create a novel task (the Hypothetical Work Task; HWT) to assess workers’ demand for payment under increasing conditions of work effort. Their study demonstrated the potential for HWTs in organizational behavior management (OBM), but researchers noted three main limitations: (a) their use of college students as participants, (b) the type of work task, which involved passing out flyers on a college campus, and (c) relatively small sample sizes for group comparisons. In the current study, we replicated one of Henley et al.’s experiments while addressing these limitations. First, we assessed the HWT in working adults rather than college students. Second, we used a work task that is more representative of some workplaces (i.e., making sales calls). Third, we used larger sample sizes to increase statistical power. We asked participants to rate how likely they were to make a certain number of sales phone calls (0 = will not make the phone calls to 100 = will definitely make the phone calls) to earn $15 at the end of an hour of work. The number of calls to earn the $15 was systematically increased from 1 to 150. Compared to those with no sales experience, participants with sales experience showed higher levels of demand in the face of increasing prices (i.e., more inelastic demand). Our study did not replicate the findings of Henley et al. but did extend the HWT to a new population of participants and a different work task.

주택 거래량의 행태 경제학적 분석

주택 거래량의 행태 경제학적 분석

メンタルヘルス受診意思決定モデルの行動経済学的検討

メンタルヘルス受診意思決定モデルの行動経済学的検討

Mostly harmless regulation? Electronic cigarettes, public policy, and consumer welfare.

Electronic cigarettes are a less harmful alternative to combustible cigarettes. We analyze data on e-cigarette choices in an online experimental market. Our data and mixed logit model capture two sources of consumer optimization errors: overestimates of the relative risks of e-cigarettes and present bias. Our novel data and policy analysis make three contributions. First, our predictions about e-cigarette use under counterfactual policy scenarios provide new information about current regulatory tradeoffs. Second, we provide empirical evidence about the role consumer optimization errors play in tobacco product choices. Third, we contribute to behavioral welfare analysis of policies that address individual optimization errors. Compared with standard cost-benefit analysis, our behavioral welfare economics analysis leads to much larger estimates of the costs of policies that discourage e-cigarette use or the benefits of policies that encourage e-cigarette use.

Excessive Valuation of Social Interaction in Text-Message Dependency: A Behavioral Economic Demand Analysis

The purpose of the present study was to determine whether a behavioral economic framework of demand analysis can be used to characterize text-message dependency. To this end, we developed a novel hypothetical task using likelihood measures to quantify demand for social interaction through text messaging. Participants completed the hypothetical demand task in which they rated their likelihood of paying an extra charge, ranging from $0.10 to $80, to continue text messaging after reaching their monthly limit. The demand for social interaction from text messaging was more intense and less elastic for the participants with higher levels of text-message dependency compared to those with lower levels of text-message dependency. The results of this proof-of-concept study support the utility of behavioral economic demand analysis for characterizing text-message dependency. In addition, the greater intensity and lesser elasticity of the demand for social interaction shown by text-dependent participants suggests that text-message dependency can be characterized by both excessiveness and persistence of the behavior, similar to other impulsivity related problems.