Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/96936 
Year of Publication: 
2014
Series/Report no.: 
WZB Discussion Paper No. SP II 2013-201r
Publisher: 
Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung (WZB), Berlin
Abstract: 
We investigate the possibility that a decision-maker prefers to avoid making a decision and instead delegates it to an external device, e.g., a coin flip. In a series of experiments our participants often choose a stochastically dominated lottery between outcomes, contradicting most theories of choice such as expected utility. A large data set on university applications in Germany shows a choice pattern that is consistent with a preference for randomization, entailing substantial allocative consequences. The findings are consistent with our theory of responsibility aversion.
Subjects: 
Stochastic dominance violations
individual decision making
university choice
matching
JEL: 
D03
D01
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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