IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/ecj/econjl/v117y2007i520p813-836.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Aspirations, Habit Formation, and Bequest Motive

Author

Listed:
  • Jaime Alonso-Carrera
  • Jordi Caballé
  • Xavier Raurich

Abstract

We consider an economy where individuals use their standard of living based on past consumption in order to evaluate the utility arising from current consumption. We analyse how this process of preference formation affects the bequest motive. We show that habits (based on one's own past consumption) reduce the willingness of individuals to leave bequests, while aspirations (based on the standard of living of parents) make the existence of positive bequests easier. The long-run effects of both habits and aspirations on capital stock and on the amount of bequests depend on whether or not the bequest motive is operative. Copyright 2007 The Author(s). Journal compilation Royal Economic Society 2007.

Suggested Citation

  • Jaime Alonso-Carrera & Jordi Caballé & Xavier Raurich, 2007. "Aspirations, Habit Formation, and Bequest Motive," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 117(520), pages 813-836, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:ecj:econjl:v:117:y:2007:i:520:p:813-836
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    To our knowledge, this item is not available for download. To find whether it is available, there are three options:
    1. Check below whether another version of this item is available online.
    2. Check on the provider's web page whether it is in fact available.
    3. Perform a search for a similarly titled item that would be available.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Caballe, J., 1995. "Growth Effects of Fiscal Policy under Altruism and Low Elasticity of Intertemporal Substitution," UFAE and IAE Working Papers 309.95, Unitat de Fonaments de l'Anàlisi Econòmica (UAB) and Institut d'Anàlisi Econòmica (CSIC).
    2. Abel, Andrew B, 1990. "Asset Prices under Habit Formation and Catching Up with the Joneses," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 80(2), pages 38-42, May.
    3. Croix, David de la & Michel, Philippe, 1999. "Optimal growth when tastes are inherited," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 23(4), pages 519-537, February.
    4. Barro, Robert J, 1974. "Are Government Bonds Net Wealth?," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 82(6), pages 1095-1117, Nov.-Dec..
    5. Jody Overland & Christopher D. Carroll & David N. Weil, 2000. "Saving and Growth with Habit Formation," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 90(3), pages 341-355, June.
    6. Philippe Weil, 1987. "Love Thy Children," Post-Print hal-03393237, HAL.
    7. Carroll, Christopher D & Overland, Jody & Weil, David N, 1997. "Comparison Utility in a Growth Model," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 2(4), pages 339-367, December.
    8. Lahiri, Amartya & Puhakka, Mikko, 1998. "Habit Persistence in Overlapping Generations Economies under Pure Exchange," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 78(1), pages 176-186, January.
    9. Mohamed Jellal & Francois-Charles Wolff, 2002. "Altruistic Bequests with Inherited Tastes," International Journal of Business and Economics, School of Management Development, Feng Chia University, Taichung, Taiwan, vol. 1(2), pages 95-113, August.
    10. John Laitner, 1988. "Bequests, Gifts, and Social Security," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 55(2), pages 275-299.
    11. Abel, Andrew B, 1986. "Capital Accumulation and Uncertain Lifetimes with Adverse Selection," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 54(5), pages 1079-1097, September.
    12. Abel, Andrew B., 1999. "Risk premia and term premia in general equilibrium," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 43(1), pages 3-33, February.
    13. de la Croix, David, 1996. "The dynamics of bequeathed tastes," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 53(1), pages 89-96, October.
    14. Abel, Andrew B, 1987. "Operative Gift and Bequest Motives," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 77(5), pages 1037-1047, December.
    15. Andrew B. Abel, 2003. "Optimal Taxation When Consumers Have Endogenous Benchmark Levels of Consumption," NBER Working Papers 10099, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    16. repec:dgr:kubcen:199554 is not listed on IDEAS
    17. Jaime Alonso‐Carrera & Jordi Caballé & Xavier Raurich, 2004. "Consumption Externalities, Habit Formation and Equilibrium Efficiency," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 106(2), pages 231-251, June.
    18. Caballe, Jordi, 1995. "Endogenous Growth, Human Capital, and Bequests in a Life-Cycle Model," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 47(1), pages 156-181, January.
    19. Galor, Oded & Ryder, Harl E., 1989. "Existence, uniqueness, and stability of equilibrium in an overlapping-generations model with productive capital," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 49(2), pages 360-375, December.
    20. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/8711 is not listed on IDEAS
    21. Martin Lettau & Harald Uhlig, 2000. "Can Habit Formation be Reconciled with Business Cycle Facts?," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 3(1), pages 79-99, January.
    22. Alonso-Carrera, Jaime & Caballe, Jordi & Raurich, Xavier, 2005. "Growth, habit formation, and catching-up with the Joneses," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 49(6), pages 1665-1691, August.
    23. Karen E. Dynan & Jonathan Skinner & Stephen P. Zeldes, 2002. "The Importance of Bequests and Life-Cycle Saving in Capital Accumulation: A New Answer," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 92(2), pages 274-278, May.
    24. David De La Croix & Philippe Michel, 2001. "Altruism and Self-Restraint," Annals of Economics and Statistics, GENES, issue 63-64, pages 233-259.
    25. Harald Uhlig & Lars Ljungqvist, 2000. "Tax Policy and Aggregate Demand Management under Catching Up with the Joneses," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 90(3), pages 356-366, June.
    26. Caballe, Jordi, 1998. "Growth Effects of Taxation under Altruism and Low Elasticity of Intertemporal Substitution," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 108(446), pages 92-104, January.
    27. de la Croix, David & Michel, Philippe, 1997. "Altruism and self-refrain," LIDAM Discussion Papers IRES 1998010, Université catholique de Louvain, Institut de Recherches Economiques et Sociales (IRES), revised 00 Apr 1998.
    28. Jhy-yuan Shieh & Ching-chong Lai & Wen-ya Chang, 2000. "Addictive behavior and endogenous growth," Journal of Economics, Springer, vol. 72(3), pages 263-273, October.
    29. repec:adr:anecst:y:2001:i:63-64:p:12 is not listed on IDEAS
    30. Weil, Philippe, 1987. "Love thy children : Reflections on the Barro debt neutrality theorem," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 19(3), pages 377-391, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Emmanuelle Augeraud-Veron & Mauro Bambi, 2012. "Does habit formation always increase the agents' desire to smooth consumption?," Discussion Papers 12/12, Department of Economics, University of York.
    2. Schäfer, Andreas & Valente, Simone, 2011. "Habit Formation, Dynastic Altruism, And Population Dynamics," Macroeconomic Dynamics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 15(3), pages 365-397, June.
    3. Jordi Caballé & Ana I. Moro Egido, 2008. "The Effect of Aspirations, Habits, and Social Security on the Distribution of Wealth," ThE Papers 08/02, Department of Economic Theory and Economic History of the University of Granada..
    4. Luca Gori & Mauro Sodini, 2014. "Indeterminacy and nonlinear dynamics in an OLG growth model with endogenous labour supply and inherited tastes," Decisions in Economics and Finance, Springer;Associazione per la Matematica, vol. 37(1), pages 159-179, April.
    5. Barnett, Richard C. & Bhattacharya, Joydeep, 2008. "Rejuveniles and growth," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 52(6), pages 1055-1071, August.
    6. Allen, Jeffrey & Chakraborty, Shankha, 2022. "Inequality and the Ability to Aspire," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 203(C), pages 264-283.
    7. Alonso-Carrera, Jaime & Caballé, Jordi & Raurich, Xavier, 2008. "Estate taxes, consumption externalities, and altruism," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(7), pages 1751-1764, July.
    8. Allen, Jeffrey & Chakraborty, Shankha, 2018. "Aspirations, health and the cost of inequality," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 144-164.
    9. Garance Genicot & Debraj Ray, 2017. "Aspirations and Inequality," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 85, pages 489-519, March.
    10. Francisco Alvarez-Cuadrado & Jose Maria Casado & Jose Maria Labeaga, 2016. "Envy and Habits: Panel Data Estimates of Interdependent Preferences," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 78(4), pages 443-469, August.
    11. Luciano Fanti & Luca Gori & Cristiana Mammana & Elisabetta Michetti, 2018. "A model of growth with inherited tastes," Decisions in Economics and Finance, Springer;Associazione per la Matematica, vol. 41(2), pages 163-186, November.
    12. Caballé, Jordi & Moro-Egido, Ana I., 2021. "Do aspirations reduce differences in wealth accumulation?," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    13. Luciano, Fanti & Luca, Gori & Cristiana, Mammana & Elisabetta, Michetti, 2016. "Complex dynamics in an OLG model of growth with inherited tastes," MPRA Paper 69906, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    14. Angelini, Viola, 2009. "Consumption and habit formation when time horizon is finite," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 103(2), pages 113-116, May.
    15. Kojun Hamada & Tsuyoshi Shinozaki & Mitsuyoshi Yanagihara, 2017. "Aspirations and the transfer paradox in an overlapping generations model," Journal of Economics, Springer, vol. 122(3), pages 279-301, November.
    16. Carlos Vargas-Silva, 2009. "Crime and Remittance Transfers," Eastern Economic Journal, Palgrave Macmillan;Eastern Economic Association, vol. 35(2), pages 232-247.
    17. Jaime Alonso‐Carrera & Stéphane Bouché, 2024. "Intergenerational Transmission of Preferences and the Operativeness of Bequest Motive," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 56(4), pages 899-932, June.
    18. Bouché, Stéphane & de Miguel, Carlos, 2019. "Endogenous aspirations, growth and the rise of environmental concerns," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 84(S1).
    19. Valente, Simone, 2011. "Habit formation and resource dependence in dynastic economies," Mathematical Social Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 61(3), pages 131-145, May.
    20. Jordi Caballé & Ana I. Moro-Egido, 2015. "On the Accumulation of Wealth under Aspirations," Working Papers 826, Barcelona School of Economics.
    21. Luciano Fanti, 2012. "Habits, aspirations and endogenous fertility," Discussion Papers 2012/142, Dipartimento di Economia e Management (DEM), University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
    22. Ana I. Moro Egido, 2021. "Social Comparisons; the behavioural component," ThE Papers 21/04, Department of Economic Theory and Economic History of the University of Granada..
    23. Marco Bertoni & Luca Corazzini, 2018. "Asymmetric affective forecasting errors and their correlation with subjective well-being," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 13(3), pages 1-22, March.
    24. Bouché, Stéphane & Modesto, Leonor, 2024. "Altruism, Human Capital and Environmental Preservation in a Globalized Economy," IZA Discussion Papers 16825, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Jordi Caballé & Ana I. Moro Egido, 2008. "The Effect of Aspirations, Habits, and Social Security on the Distribution of Wealth," ThE Papers 08/02, Department of Economic Theory and Economic History of the University of Granada..
    2. Alonso-Carrera, Jaime & Caballé, Jordi & Raurich, Xavier, 2008. "Estate taxes, consumption externalities, and altruism," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(7), pages 1751-1764, July.
    3. Luca Gori & Mauro Sodini, 2014. "Indeterminacy and nonlinear dynamics in an OLG growth model with endogenous labour supply and inherited tastes," Decisions in Economics and Finance, Springer;Associazione per la Matematica, vol. 37(1), pages 159-179, April.
    4. Alonso-Carrera, Jaime & Caballe, Jordi & Raurich, Xavier, 2005. "Growth, habit formation, and catching-up with the Joneses," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 49(6), pages 1665-1691, August.
    5. Ali Choudhary & Paul Levine, 2006. "The 24/7 Society and Multiple Habits," School of Economics Discussion Papers 0506, School of Economics, University of Surrey.
    6. Liu, Chia-ying & Chang, Juin-jen, 2011. "Keeping up with the Joneses, consumer ethnocentrism, and optimal taxation," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 28(4), pages 1519-1525, July.
    7. Jaime Alonso‐Carrera & Jordi Caballé & Xavier Raurich, 2004. "Consumption Externalities, Habit Formation and Equilibrium Efficiency," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 106(2), pages 231-251, June.
    8. Caballé, Jordi & Moro-Egido, Ana I., 2021. "Do aspirations reduce differences in wealth accumulation?," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    9. Chang, Ming-Jen & Chang, Juin-Jen & Shieh, Jhy-Yuan, 2014. "Keeping up with the Joneses and exchange rate volatility in a Redux model," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 29(C), pages 569-584.
    10. Juin-jen Chang & Jhy-hwa Chen & Jhy-yuan Shieh, 2012. "Consumption externalities, market imperfections and optimal taxation," International Journal of Economic Theory, The International Society for Economic Theory, vol. 8(4), pages 345-359, December.
    11. Juin-Jen Chang & Yi-Ling Cheng & Shin-Kun Peng, 2017. "Social comparisons in consumption, international capital flows and tax competition," International Journal of Economic Theory, The International Society for Economic Theory, vol. 13(1), pages 47-71, March.
    12. Chen, Jhy-hwa & Yang, Chih-yu & Shieh, Jhy-yuan & Chang, Juin-jen, 2020. "Consumption aspirations in dirty and clean goods and economic growth," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 254-266.
    13. Richard Barnett & Joydeep Bhattacharya & Helle Bunzel, 2013. "Deviant generations, Ricardian equivalence, and growth cycles," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 52(1), pages 367-396, January.
    14. Jordi Caballé & Ana I. Moro-Egido, 2015. "On the Accumulation of Wealth under Aspirations," Working Papers 826, Barcelona School of Economics.
    15. Been‐Lon Chen, 2007. "Multiple BGPs in a Growth Model with Habit Persistence," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 39(1), pages 25-48, February.
    16. Hyeon O. Lee & Hyun Park, 2015. "Indeterminate Balanced Growth under Habit Persistence and Fiscal Policies," International Economic Journal, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(2), pages 259-284, June.
    17. Park, Hyun, 2013. "Do habits generate endogenous fluctuations in a growing economy?," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 27(C), pages 54-68.
    18. Luciano Fanti, 2012. "Habits, aspirations and endogenous fertility," Discussion Papers 2012/143, Dipartimento di Economia e Management (DEM), University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
    19. Manuel Gómez, 2010. "A note on external habits and efficiency in the AK model," Journal of Economics, Springer, vol. 99(1), pages 53-64, February.
    20. Jaime Alonso-Carrera & Jordi Caball?Author-Email: jordi.caballe@uab.es & Xavier Raurich, 2001. "Income Taxation with Habit Formation and Consumption Externalities," UFAE and IAE Working Papers 496.01, Unitat de Fonaments de l'Anàlisi Econòmica (UAB) and Institut d'Anàlisi Econòmica (CSIC).

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • E21 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Consumption; Saving; Wealth
    • E13 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - General Aggregative Models - - - Neoclassical
    • E62 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook - - - Fiscal Policy; Modern Monetary Theory

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:ecj:econjl:v:117:y:2007:i:520:p:813-836. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley-Blackwell Digital Licensing or Christopher F. Baum (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/resssea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.