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The multiple priors of the open-minded decision maker

Author

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  • Martin Dumav

    (Universidad Carlos III)

  • Maxwell B. Stinchcombe

    (University of Texas)

Abstract

A multiple-prior decision maker is open-minded if he/she can describe, as subjective uncertainty, all convex sets of distributions over payoff relevant consequences. Theorem 1: open-mindedness is equivalent to the ability to subjectively describe both the uniform distribution on an interval and the set of all distributions on an interval. Theorem 2: sets of priors that fail either condition cannot describe a dense class of problems. The use of open-minded sets of priors to model decision makers allows the objective and the subjective approaches to uncertainty to inform each other. It also changes the implications of previously used axioms for multi-prior preferences because the axioms must apply to a larger set of problems.

Suggested Citation

  • Martin Dumav & Maxwell B. Stinchcombe, 2021. "The multiple priors of the open-minded decision maker," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 71(2), pages 663-692, March.
  • Handle: RePEc:spr:joecth:v:71:y:2021:i:2:d:10.1007_s00199-020-01262-4
    DOI: 10.1007/s00199-020-01262-4
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Ambiguity; Decision theory; Multiple priors; Open-mindedness;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D81 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Criteria for Decision-Making under Risk and Uncertainty

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