Frames and Games

Economists are proud of being able to point to situations in which the fundamental forces identified by economic analysis work inexorably. One such case is the effect that supply reductions have on prices in the international oil market. One can safely predict that prices will increase and that any attempts by politicians and journalists to prevent the increase by presenting the situation in a particular light will not work. It is known, however, that things are not always that simple. Numerous studies have shown that behaviour often depends on the way in which logically equivalent choice situations and strategically equivalent situations are described or presented to people. Such so-called framing effects have been identified in a number of different contexts. Kuhberger [8] surveys some of the relevant literature.