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An experimental investigation of risk sharing and adverse selection

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  • Franziska Tausch
  • Jan Potters
  • Arno Riedl

Abstract

Does adverse selection hamper the effectiveness of voluntary risk sharing? How do differences in risk profiles affect adverse selection? We experimentally investigate individuals’ willingness to share risks with others. Across treatments we vary how risk profiles differ between individuals. We find strong evidence for adverse selection if individuals’ risk profiles can be ranked according to first-order stochastic dominance and only little evidence for adverse selection if risk profiles can only be ranked according to mean-preserving spreads. We observe the same pattern also for anticipated adverse selection. These results suggest that the degree to which adverse selection erodes voluntary risk sharing arrangements crucially depends on the form of risk heterogeneity. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media New York 2014

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  • Franziska Tausch & Jan Potters & Arno Riedl, 2014. "An experimental investigation of risk sharing and adverse selection," Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, Springer, vol. 48(2), pages 167-186, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jrisku:v:48:y:2014:i:2:p:167-186
    DOI: 10.1007/s11166-014-9187-y
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    Cited by:

    1. Ronald Peeters & Leonard Wolk, 2017. "Eliciting interval beliefs: An experimental study," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 12(4), pages 1-15, April.
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    3. Cettolin, Elena & Tausch, Franziska, 2016. "Risk taking and risk sharing: does responsibility matter? (RM/13/045-revised-)," Research Memorandum 018, Maastricht University, Graduate School of Business and Economics (GSBE).
    4. Schlag, Karl H. & van der Weele, Joël J., 2015. "A method to elicit beliefs as most likely intervals," Judgment and Decision Making, Cambridge University Press, vol. 10(5), pages 456-468, September.
    5. Asadul Islam & C. Matthew Leister & Minhaj Mahmud & Paul A. Raschky, 2020. "Natural disaster and risk-sharing behavior: Evidence from rural Bangladesh," Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, Springer, vol. 61(1), pages 67-99, August.
    6. Maria Carannante & Valeria D’amato & Steven Haberman & Massimiliano Menzietti, 2024. "Frailty-based mortality models and reserving for longevity risk," The Geneva Papers on Risk and Insurance - Issues and Practice, Palgrave Macmillan;The Geneva Association, vol. 49(2), pages 320-339, April.
    7. Elena Cettolin & Franziska Tausch, 2015. "Risk taking and risk sharing: Does responsibility matter?," Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, Springer, vol. 50(3), pages 229-248, June.
    8. repec:cup:judgdm:v:10:y:2015:i:5:p:456-468 is not listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Adverse selection; Risk sharing; Experiments; Risk heterogeneity; D81; C91;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D81 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Criteria for Decision-Making under Risk and Uncertainty
    • C91 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Laboratory, Individual Behavior

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