Econometrica

Journal Of The Econometric Society

An International Society for the Advancement of Economic
Theory in its Relation to Statistics and Mathematics

Edited by: Guido W. Imbens • Print ISSN: 0012-9682 • Online ISSN: 1468-0262

Econometrica: Jan, 2025, Volume 93, Issue 1

Tell Me Something I Don't Already Know: Learning in Low- and High-Inflation Settings

https://doi.org/10.3982/ECTA22764
p. 229-264

Michael Weber|Bernardo Candia|Hassan Afrouzi|Tiziano Ropele|Rodrigo Lluberas|Serafin Frache|Brent Meyer|Saten Kumar|Yuriy Gorodnichenko|Dimitris Georgarakos|Olivier Coibion|Geoff Kenny|Jorge Ponce

Using randomized control trials (RCTs) applied over time in different countries, we study whether the economic environment affects how agents learn from new information. We show that as inflation rose in advanced economies, both households and firms became more attentive and informed about publicly available news about inflation, leading them to respond less to exogenously provided information about inflation and monetary policy. We also study the effects of RCTs in countries where inflation has been consistently high (Uruguay) and low (New Zealand) as well as what happens when the same agents are repeatedly provided information in both low‐ and high‐inflation environments (Italy). Our results broadly support models in which inattention is an endogenous outcome that depends on the economic environment.


Full Content

Supplemental Material

Supplement to "Tell Me Something I Don't Already Know: Learning in Low and High-Inflation Settings"

Michael Weber, Bernardo Candia, Hassan Afrouzi, Tiziano Ropele, Rodrigo Lluberas, Serafin Frache, Brent Meyer, Saten Kumar, Yuriy Gorodnichenko, Dimitris Georgarakos, Olivier Coibion, Geoff Kenny, and Jorge Ponce

This appendix conatins material not found within the manuscript.

Supplement to "Tell Me Something I Don't Already Know: Learning in Low and High-Inflation Settings"

Michael Weber, Bernardo Candia, Hassan Afrouzi, Tiziano Ropele, Rodrigo Lluberas, Serafin Frache, Brent Meyer, Saten Kumar, Yuriy Gorodnichenko, Dimitris Georgarakos, Olivier Coibion, Geoff Kenny, and Jorge Ponce

The replication package for this paper is available at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.13770785.

Journal News

View