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Updated: Jul 25, 2025

Assessment of Social Transmission of Food Preferences Behaviors
Published on: January 25, 2018
An experimental investigation of social risk preferences for health
Arthur E Attema1, Olivier L'Haridon2, Gijs van de Kuilen3
1Erasmus School of Health Policy and Management (ESHPM), EsCHER, Erasmus University, P.O. Box 1738, 3000 DR Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Abstract:
In this paper, we use the risk apportionment technique of Eeckhoudt, Rey and Schlesinger (2007) to study higher order risk preferences for others' health as well as ex-ante and ex-post inequality preferences for social risky distributions, and their interaction. In an experiment on a sample of university students acting as impartial spectators, we observe risk aversion towards social health losses and a dislike of ex-ante inequality. In addition, evidence for ex-post inequality seeking is much weaker than evidence for ex-ante inequality aversion. Because ex-ante inequality aversion is unrelated to risk aversion, we conclude that simple forms of utilitarianism are not relevant for individual judgment of social risk over health. Last, our investigation of precautionary distribution, which would occur when one particular group in the society suffers from background health risk, shows substantial polarization of preferences.
Supplementary Information:
The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11238-023-09928-w.
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