Preferences and rationality

 

My passion for research on preferences and rationality started in the late 90's on my undergraduate dissertation, where I toyed around with alternative assumptions of preferences in a Real Business Cycle model. From there, I went on to write a doctoral dissertation on "The Strength of Social Preferences" where I showed that altruism and fairness are separable components of one's utility function, and further work in developing preference theories showing that pro-sociality is reference dependent on ex ante expected payoffs and jump discontinuous around this point. These theories explain interesting outcomes such as disadvantageous inequity in dictator games or equitable proposals in legislative bargaining, for instance.

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I also contribute to the understanding of bounded rationality in dynamic games. “Understanding Perpetual R&D Races” explained previously puzzling behaviour in perpetual races and introduced Markov Perfect Quantal Response Equilibria, a solution concept for analyzing bounded rationality in dynamic games. “On the Beliefs off the Path: Equilibrium Refinement due to Quantal Response and Level-k” showed that the nature of an individual’s bounded rationality is dynamic and evolves over time, and how existing theories can be adapted to model this phenomenon. This prompts researchers to assess the validity of dynamic versus traditional static approaches to modelling bounded rationality. 

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These are my papers on preferences and rationality:

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Renaud, F. and J. H. W. Tan (2024). A Test of Loyalty.Theory and Decision, 97(1), 109-137.

 

Tan, J. H. W. and F. Bolle (2023). Intragroup Punishment and Intergroup Conflict Aversion Weaken Intragroup

Cooperation in Finitely Repeated Games. Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, 105, 102034.

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Breitmoser, Y. and J. H. W. Tan (2020). Why Should Majority Bargaining Be Unfair? Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization,175, 281-295.

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Kritikos, A. S. and J. H. W. Tan (2016). Influence in the Face of Impunity. Economics Letters, 141, 119-121.

 

Breitmoser, Y., J. H. W. Tan and D. J. Zizzo (2014). On the Beliefs Off the Path: Equilibrium Refinement due to Quantal Response and Level-k. Games and Economic Behavior, 86, 102-125.

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Breitmoser, Y. and J. H. W. Tan (2013). Reference Dependent Altruism in Demand Bargaining. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 92, 127-140.

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Hargreaves Heap, S., J. H. W. Tan and D. J. Zizzo (2013). Trust, Inequality and the Market. Theory and Decision, 74(3), 311-333.

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Breitmoser, Y., J. H. W. Tan and D. J. Zizzo (2010). Understanding Perpetual R&D Races. Economic Theory, 44(3), 445-467.

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Poulsen A. U. and J. H. W. Tan (2007). Information Acquisition in the Ultimatum Game: An Experimental Study. Experimental Economics, 10(4), 391-409.

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Tan, J. H. W. (2007). The Strength of Social Preferences: Synopsis, Summa cum Laude, 1, 142-143.

Tan, J. H. W. and F. Bolle (2006). On the Relative Strengths of Altruism and Fairness. Theory and Decision, 60(1), 35-67.

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Tan, J. H. W. (2005). The Strength of Social Preferences, Doctoral Dissertation, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, European University Viadrina, Germany.

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Tan, J. H. W. (2000). Unemployment Insurance in Real Business Cycle Theory: A Critical Analysis, Honours Dissertation, Department of Economics, University of Essex, UK.

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