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Behavioral economics in the time of coronavirus: rebellion or “willful ignorance” in the face of “grand challenges”

This article considers the curious case of human behavior in the context of the coronavirus pandemic. We have observed that individuals, societies, and nations are exhibiting various irrationalities that are worth studying more closely. Applying the insights and research of reputed behavioral econom...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor principal: Rao, Pritika
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Springer International Publishing 2020
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7250586/
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s43253-020-00015-2
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author Rao, Pritika
author_facet Rao, Pritika
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description This article considers the curious case of human behavior in the context of the coronavirus pandemic. We have observed that individuals, societies, and nations are exhibiting various irrationalities that are worth studying more closely. Applying the insights and research of reputed behavioral economists to these unprecedented circumstances, we explore possible explanations for individual and collective actions that appear, in many cases, to be highly counterintuitive. In the face of large-scale global issues, that Lazaric (2020) refers to as “grand challenges,” fraught with uncertainties and informational asymmetries, we delve deeper into the complexities of the factors that influence decision-making at various levels as we try to make sense of behavior. We wonder if reasons include the outright rejection of facts or perhaps the unwillingness to even receive information that has the potential adversely affect one’s welfare or self-interests—a tendency that Grossman and Van Der Weele (2017) term “willful ignorance.” We conclude with a few lessons and recommendations that can help understand and motivate behavior.
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spelling pubmed-72505862020-05-27 Behavioral economics in the time of coronavirus: rebellion or “willful ignorance” in the face of “grand challenges” Rao, Pritika Rev Evol Polit Econ Brief Communication This article considers the curious case of human behavior in the context of the coronavirus pandemic. We have observed that individuals, societies, and nations are exhibiting various irrationalities that are worth studying more closely. Applying the insights and research of reputed behavioral economists to these unprecedented circumstances, we explore possible explanations for individual and collective actions that appear, in many cases, to be highly counterintuitive. In the face of large-scale global issues, that Lazaric (2020) refers to as “grand challenges,” fraught with uncertainties and informational asymmetries, we delve deeper into the complexities of the factors that influence decision-making at various levels as we try to make sense of behavior. We wonder if reasons include the outright rejection of facts or perhaps the unwillingness to even receive information that has the potential adversely affect one’s welfare or self-interests—a tendency that Grossman and Van Der Weele (2017) term “willful ignorance.” We conclude with a few lessons and recommendations that can help understand and motivate behavior. Springer International Publishing 2020-05-27 2020 /pmc/articles/PMC7250586/ http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s43253-020-00015-2 Text en © European Association for Evolutionary Political Economy 2020 This article is made available via the PMC Open Access Subset for unrestricted research re-use and secondary analysis in any form or by any means with acknowledgement of the original source. These permissions are granted for the duration of the World Health Organization (WHO) declaration of COVID-19 as a global pandemic.
spellingShingle Brief Communication
Rao, Pritika
Behavioral economics in the time of coronavirus: rebellion or “willful ignorance” in the face of “grand challenges”
title Behavioral economics in the time of coronavirus: rebellion or “willful ignorance” in the face of “grand challenges”
title_full Behavioral economics in the time of coronavirus: rebellion or “willful ignorance” in the face of “grand challenges”
title_fullStr Behavioral economics in the time of coronavirus: rebellion or “willful ignorance” in the face of “grand challenges”
title_full_unstemmed Behavioral economics in the time of coronavirus: rebellion or “willful ignorance” in the face of “grand challenges”
title_short Behavioral economics in the time of coronavirus: rebellion or “willful ignorance” in the face of “grand challenges”
title_sort behavioral economics in the time of coronavirus: rebellion or “willful ignorance” in the face of “grand challenges”
topic Brief Communication
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7250586/
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s43253-020-00015-2
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