Consider the following claim: “If a decision maker prefers one given lottery that yields $x with probability 1 over another given lottery whose expected return is $x, then we can fully characterize the agent's risk attitude. That is, this information comparing two given lotteries is enough to determine if the decision maker is risk averse, risk loving or risk neutral.” If this claim is TRUE, then provide a proof. If it is FALSE, then prove your argument by providing an explanation.

Consider the following claim: “If a decision maker prefers one given lottery that yields $x with probability 1 over another given lottery whose expected return is $x, then we can fully characterize the agent's risk attitude. That is, this information comparing two given lotteries is enough to determine if the decision maker is risk averse, risk loving or risk neutral.” If this claim is TRUE, then provide a proof. If it is FALSE, then prove your argument by providing an explanation.

Microeconomic Theory

12th Edition

ISBN:9781337517942

Author:NICHOLSON

Publisher:NICHOLSON

Chapter18: Asymmetric Information

Section: Chapter Questions

Problem 18.8P

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For each of the following scenarios, determine whether the decision maker is risk neutral, risk averse, or risk loving. a. A manager prefers a 20 percent chance of receiving $1,400 and an 80 percent chance of receiving $500 to receiving $680 for sure. b. A shareholder prefers receiving $920 with certainty to an 80 percent chance of receiving $1,100 and a 20 percent chance of receiving $200. c. A consumer is indifferent between receiving $1,360 for sure and a lottery that pays $2,000 with a 60 percent probability and $400 with a 40 percent probability.
Consider two individuals whose utility function over wealth I is ?(?) = √?. Both people face a 10 percent chance of getting sick, and foreach the total cost of illness equals $50,000. Suppose person A has a total net worth of $100,000, and person B has a total net worth of $1,000,000. Both people have the option to buy an actuarially fair insurance contract that would fully insure them against the cost of the illness. a. Using expected utility calculations, show that person A would certainly buy full, actuarially fair insurance. b. Suppose an insurance company wants to maximize profits and wants to charge each customer the maximum price they are willing to pay. How much should the insurance company charge each client so that both buy the contract? c. What is surprising about your result in part b? What does this tell you about how insurance companies may be pricing health insurance contracts in the real world?
Let U(x)= x^(beta/2) denote an agent's utility function, where Beta > 0 is a parameter that defines the agent's attitude towards risk. Consider a gamble that pays a prize X = 10 with probability 0.2, a price X = 50 with probability 0.4 and a price X = 100 with probability 0.4. Compute the agentís expected utility for such gamble and find the value of Beta such that the agentis risk neutral? Suppose B= 1, what is the certainty equivalent of the gamble described above? What is the Arrow-Pratt measure of absolute risk aversion?
Consider the St. Petersburg Paradox problem first discussed by Daniel Bernoulli in 1738. The game consists of tossing a coin. The player gets a payoff of 2^n where n is the number of times the coin is tossed to get the first head. So, if the sequence of tosses yields TTTH, you get a payoff of 2^4 this payoff occurs with probability (1/2^4). Compute the expected value of playing this game. Next, assume that utility U is a function of wealth X given by U = X.5 and that X = $1,000,000. In this part of the question, assume that the game ends if the first head has not occurred after 40 tosses of the coin. In that case, the payoff is 240 and the game is over. What is the expected payout of this game? Finally, what is the most you would pay to play the game if you require that your expected utility after playing the game must be equal to your utility before playing the game? Use the Goal Seek function (found in Data, What-If Analysis) in Excel.
An investor has a power utility function with a coefficient of relative risk aversion of 3. Compare the utility that the investor would receive from a certain income of £2 with that generated by a lottery having equally likely outcomes of £1 and £3. Calculate the certain level of income which, for an investor with preferences as above, would generate identical expected utility to the lottery described. How much of the original certain income of £2 the investor would be willing to pay to avoid the lottery? Detail the calculations and carefully explain your answer.
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Consider the following compound lottery, described in words: "The probability that the price of copper increases tomorrow is objectively determined to be 0.5. If it increases, then tomorrow I will flip a coin to determine a monetary payout that you will receive: if the flip is Heads, you win $100, while if it is Tails, you win $50. If it does not increase, then I will roll a 10-sided die (assume each side is equally likely to be rolled). If the die roll is a 4 or lower, you will win $100. If it is a 5, then you will win $200, and if it is a 6 or greater, you will win $50." Fill in the blanks below for the reduced lottery that corresponds to this compound lottery (write in decimals). R= ( , $50; , $100; , $200)
Consider a first-price, sealed-bid auction, and suppose there are only three feasible bids: A bidder can bid 1, 2, or 3. The payoff to a losing bidder is zero. The payoff to a winning bidder equals his valuation minus the price paid (which, by the rules of the auction, is his bid). What is private information to a bidder is how much the item is worth to him; hence, a bidder’s type is his valuation. Assume that there are only two valuations, which we’ll denote L and H, where H > 3 > L > 2. Assume also that each bidder has probability .75 of having a high valuation, H. The Bayesian game is then structured as follows: First, Nature chooses the two bidders’ valuations. Second, each bidder learns his valuation, but does not learn the valuation of the other bidder. Third, the two bidders simultaneously submit bids. A strategy for a bidder is a pair of actions: what to bid when he has a high valuation and what to bid when he has a low valuation. a. Derive the conditions on H and L…
A risk-averse manager is considering two projects. The first project involves expanding the market for bologna; the second involves expanding the market for caviar. There is a 10 percent chance of a recession and a 90 percent chance of an economic boom. During a boom, the bologna project will lose $10,000, whereas the caviar project will earn $20,000. During a recession, the bologna project will earn $12,000 and the caviar project will lose $8,000. If the alternative is earning $3,000 on a safe asset (say, a Treasury bill), what should the manager do? Why?
A woman with current wealth X has the opportunity to bet an amount on the occurrence of an event that she knows will occur with probability P. If she wagers W, she will received 2W, if the event occur and if it does not. Assume that the Bernoulli utility function takes the form u(x) = with r > 0. How much should she wager? Does her utility function exhibit CARA, DARA, IARA? Alex plays football for a local club in Kumasi. If he does not suffer any injury by the end of the season, he will get a professional contract with Kotoko, which is worth $10,000. If he is injured though, he will get a contract as a fitness coach worth $100. The probability of the injury is 10%. Describe the lottery What is the expected value of this lottery? What is the expected utility of this lottery if u(x) = Assume he could buy insurance at price P that could pay $9,900 in case of injury. What is the highest value of P that makes it worthwhile for Alex to purchase insurance? What is the certainty…
Please answer true or false for each of the following statements. A risk-averse consumer has increasing marginal utility. A risk-neutral consumer is willing to pay a positive risk-premium to avoid risk. A risk-neutral consumer has a linear utility function. A risk-loving consumer has a convex utility function. A risk-averse consumer can increase her expected utility by buying multiple stocks whose outcomes are not closely related, instead of buying only one stock.