Citation

Discussion Paper Details

Please find the details for DP8531 in an easy to copy and paste format below:

Full Details   |   Bibliographic Reference

Full Details

Title: Time to Decide: Information Search and Revelation in Groups

Author(s): Arthur Campbell, Florian Ederer and Johannes Spinnewijn

Publication Date: August 2011

Keyword(s): deadlines, group decisions, information disclosure and information search

Programme Area(s): Industrial Organization

Abstract: We analyze costly information acquisition and information revelation in groups in a dynamic setting. Even when group members have perfectly aligned interests the group may inefficiently delay decisions. When deadlines are far away, uninformed group members freeride on each others' efforts to acquire information. When deadlines draw close, informed group members stop revealing their information in an attempt to incentivize other group members to continue searching for information. Surprisingly, setting a tighter deadline may increase the expected decision time and increase the expected accuracy of the decision in the unique equilibrium. As long as the deadline is set optimally, welfare is higher when information is only privately observable to the agent who obtained information rather than to the entire group.

For full details and related downloads, please visit: https://cepr.org/active/publications/discussion_papers/dp.php?dpno=8531

Bibliographic Reference

Campbell, A, Ederer, F and Spinnewijn, J. 2011. 'Time to Decide: Information Search and Revelation in Groups'. London, Centre for Economic Policy Research. https://cepr.org/active/publications/discussion_papers/dp.php?dpno=8531