scholarly journals The Role of Information in Innovation and Competition

2015 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 828-870 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ufuk Akcigit ◽  
Qingmin Liu
Keyword(s):  
Private Information ◽  
Trial And Error ◽  
Welfare Losses ◽  
Dead End ◽  
Wrong Direction ◽  
Efficiency Losses ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Information Externality ◽  
Role Of Information

Abstract Innovation is typically a trial-and-error process. While some research paths lead to the innovation sought, others result in dead ends. Because firms benefit from their competitors working in the wrong direction, they do not reveal their dead-end findings. Time and resources are wasted on projects that other firms have already found to be fruitless. We offer a simple model with two firms and two research lines to study this prevalent problem. We characterize the equilibrium in a decentralized environment that necessarily entails significant efficiency losses due to wasteful dead-end replication and an information externality that leads to an early abandonment of the risky project. We show that different types of firms follow different innovation strategies and create different kinds of welfare losses. In an extension of the core model, we also study a centralized mechanism whereby firms are incentivized to disclose their actions and share their private information in a timely manner.

scholarly journals Humans Against Virus or Humans Against Humans: A Game Theory Approach to the COVID-19 Pandemic

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Santiago Forero-Alvarado ◽  
Nicolás Moreno-Arias ◽  
Juan J. Ospina-Tejeiro
Keyword(s):  
Game Theory ◽  
Private Information ◽  
Health Economy ◽  
Theory Approach ◽  
Welfare Losses ◽  
Key Characteristics ◽  
The Us ◽  
Containment Measures ◽  
Role Of Information

Externalities and private information are key characteristics of an epidemic like the Covid-19 pandemic. We study the welfare costs stemming from the incomplete information environment that these characteristics foster. We develop a framework that embeds a game theory approach into a macro SIR model to analyze the role of information in determining the extent of the health-economy trade-off of a pandemic. We apply the model to the Covid-19 epidemic in the US and find that the costs of keeping health information private are between USD $5.9$ trillion and USD $6.7$ trillion. We then find an optimal policy of disclosure and divulgation that, combined with testing and containment measures, can improve welfare. Since it is private information about individuals' health what produces the greatest welfare losses, finding ways to make such information known as precisely as possible, would result in significantly fewer deaths and significantly higher economic activity.

The influence of information relevance on the continued influence effect of misinformation

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hua Jin ◽  
Lina Jia ◽  
Xiaojuan Yin ◽  
Shilin Wei ◽  
Guiping Xu
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
Questionnaire Survey ◽  
Personal Involvement ◽  
Influence Effect ◽  
Information Relevance ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Role Of Information

Misinformation often continues to influence people’s cognition even after corrected (the ‘continued influence effect of misinformation’, the CIEM). This study investigated the role of information relevance in the CIEM by questionnaire survey and experimental study. The results showed that information with higher relevance to the individuals had a larger CIEM, indicating a role of information relevance in the CIEM. Personal involvement might explain the effects of information relevance on the CIEM. This study provides insightful clues for reducing the CIEM in different types of misinformation and misinformation with varying relevance.

scholarly journals Modeling the Revolving Revolution: The Debt Collection Channel

2017 ◽  
Vol 107 (3) ◽  
pp. 897-930 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lukasz A. Drozd ◽  
Ricardo Serrano-Padial
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Private Information ◽  
Credit Cards ◽  
Consumer Debt ◽  
Widespread Adoption ◽  
Debt Collection ◽  
Role Of Information

We investigate the role of information technology (IT) in the collection of delinquent consumer debt. We argue that the widespread adoption of IT by the debt collection industry in the 1990s contributed to the observed expansion of unsecured risky lending such as credit cards. Our model stresses the importance of delinquency and private information about borrower solvency. The prevalence of delinquency implies that the costs of debt collection must be borne by lenders to sustain incentives to repay debt. IT mitigates informational asymmetries, allowing lenders to concentrate collection efforts on delinquent borrowers who are more likely to repay. (JEL D14, D82, G21, L84, M15, O33)

Information Reporting and Tax Compliance

2020 ◽  
Vol 110 ◽  
pp. 162-166
Author(s):  
Bibek Adhikari ◽  
James Alm ◽  
Timothy F. Harris
Keyword(s):  
Credit Cards ◽  
Tax Compliance ◽  
Business Reporting ◽  
Information Reporting ◽  
The Us ◽  
Different Types ◽  
New Form ◽  
New Evidence ◽  
Role Of Information

Ensuring tax compliance is an enduring problem for governments in all countries. In this paper, we examine the role of information reporting in increasing tax compliance. We first discuss the practice of information reporting in the US, including a recent IRS initiative that implemented information reporting for income received through debit and credit cards via the new Form 1099-K. We then review the literature on the compliance effects of information reporting. Finally, we report some new evidence that indicates that Form 1099-K information reporting had significant--but heterogeneous--impacts on compliance rates of different types of business reporting.

Individual processing of phishing emails

2016 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 265-281 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brynne Harrison ◽  
Elena Svetieva ◽  
Arun Vishwanath
Keyword(s):  
Private Information ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Online Fraud ◽  
Phishing Attacks ◽  
Effective Decision ◽  
Effective Decision Making ◽  
E Mail ◽  
Role Of Information ◽  
Insight Into

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore user susceptibility to phishing by unpacking the mechanisms that may influence individual victimization. The focus is on the characteristics of the e-mail message, users’ knowledge and experience with phishing, and the manner in which these interact and influence how users cognitively process phishing e-mails. Design/methodology/approach – A field experiment was conducted where 194 subjects were exposed to a real phishing attack. The experimenters manipulated the contents of the message and measures of user traits and user processing were obtained after the phishing attack. Findings – Of the original list of targets, 47 percent divulged their private information to a bogus form page. Phishing susceptibility was predicted by a particular combination of both low attention to the e-mail elements and high elaboration of the phishing message. The presence of a threat or reward-based phishing message did not affect these processes, nor did it affect subsequent phishing susceptibility. Finally, individual factors such as knowledge and experience with e-mail increased resilience to the phishing attack. Research limitations/implications – The findings are generalizable to students who are a particularly vulnerable target of phishing attacks. Practical implications – The results presented in this study provide pragmatic recommendations for developing user-centered interventions to thwart phishing attacks. Lastly the authors suggest more effective educational efforts to protect individuals from such online fraud. Originality/value – This study provides novel insight into why phishing is successful, the human factor in susceptibility to online deception as well the role of information processing in effective decision making in this context. Based on the findings, the authors dispel common misconceptions about phishing and discuss more effective educational efforts to protect individuals from such online fraud.

scholarly journals The Role of Information in Assessing the Risk of Conducting Bankruptcy Proceedings

Risks ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 64
Author(s):  
Michał Baran ◽  
Kinga Bauer
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Wrong Decision ◽  
Managerial Decisions ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Types Of Information ◽  
The Right ◽  
Role Of Information

Modern management means making managerial decisions in many situations—including the administrative ordering of matters of a bankrupt enterprise. The situation in which the court approves the opening of bankruptcy proceedings is strictly regulated by law. This does not mean, however, that such a decision is made under conditions of certainty as to its consequences. The risk of making a wrong decision has significant consequences for everyone who is interested in it (the bankrupt company, its partners, employees, banks, the tax office). The purpose of this article is to explain the importance and significance of the various types of information that are used to reliably assess the value of a failing enterprise’s assets. The information of individual types is analyzed in the decision-making process which leads to the right decision on whether to start bankruptcy proceedings. Therefore, in the theoretical part, the authors prepare a list of types of information used in the mentioned process. Then the authors present the results of a survey (103 specialists in the field of bankruptcy), which allows to assess the real meaning of information of individual types. The main contribution for which the present paper is responsible is the description of the verified tool which functioned in the form of the survey that was applied in the study and the result arising from conducting it. This survey was used to achieve the main objective that was focused on constructing the hierarchy of significance of different types of information relating to the risk of conducting bankruptcy proceedings. The main findings show that in general insolvency specialists prioritize the information (financial and also not financial) not originating from financial reporting.

Is Imitation Bad for the Production of Creative Works?

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 115-144
Author(s):  
Sang Hoo Bae ◽  
Kyeongwon Yoo
Keyword(s):  
Private Information ◽  
Copyright Protection ◽  
End User ◽  
Positive Role ◽  
Production Distribution ◽  
Different Types ◽  
High Level ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Consumption Demand

Abstract This paper develops a theoretical framework to discuss the positive role of imitative works where creators often have private information about their creative abilities and may need outside investment. Within this framework, we consider the impact of three types of copyright protection during the different stages: the production, distribution, and consumption of creative works. Different types of enforcement can discourage imitation (production-side enforcement), limit distribution (supply-side enforcement), and restrict consumption (demand-side enforcement) of unauthorized copies of creative works. The last two types of infringement are called end-user piracy since these involve end-users, who actively search and illegally access creative works. The main results show that substitutability exists between copyright protection against end-user piracy since both types of enforcement increase the creator’s incentive with a higher return. However, it cannot solve the inefficient investment problem due to information asymmetry. There exists complementarity between copyright protection against end-user piracy and imitation. When weak protection against end-user piracy yields the overproduction of creative works, a high level of protection against imitation can minimize the related inefficiencies. However, when end-user piracy enforcement increases and brings underproduction, imitative works can benefit society.

scholarly journals Crises and Prices: Information Aggregation, Multiplicity, and Volatility

2006 ◽  
Vol 96 (5) ◽  
pp. 1720-1736 ◽  
Author(s):  
George-Marios Angeletos ◽  
Iván Werning
Keyword(s):  
Private Information ◽  
Imperfect Information ◽  
Asset Price ◽  
Information Aggregation ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Noisy Signal ◽  
Small Noise ◽  
Endogenous Information ◽  
Role Of Information

Crises are volatile times when endogenous sources of information are closely monitored. We study the role of information in crises by introducing a financial market in a coordination game with imperfect information. The asset price aggregates dispersed private information acting as a public noisy signal. In contrast to the case with exogenous information, our main result is that uniqueness may not obtain as a perturbation from perfect information: multiplicity is ensured with small noise. In addition, we show that: (a) multiplicity may emerge in the financial price itself; (b) less noise may contribute toward nonfundamental volatility even when the equilibrium is unique; and (c) similar results obtain for a model where individuals observe one another's actions, highlighting the importance of endogenous information more generally.

The Role of Information Patterns in Designing Crowdsourcing Contests

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gireeja V. Ranade ◽  
Lav R. Varshney
Keyword(s):  
Design Knowledge ◽  
Rule Of Thumb ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Alternative Means ◽  
Information Patterns ◽  
Generic Tasks ◽  
Contest Design ◽  
Crowdsourcing Contest ◽  
Role Of Information

Crowdsourcing contests are used widely by organizations as a means of accomplishing tasks. These organizations would like to maximize the utility obtained through worker submissions to the contest. If this utility is greater than that obtained through alternative means of completing the task (e.g. hiring someone), the task should be crowdsourced. We analyze the utility generated for different types of tasks and provide a rule-of-thumb crowdsourcing contest design. Knowledge about the relative strengths of the workers participating in the contest is an important factor in contest design. When the contest organizer is unsure about the strength of the workers, crowdsourcing contests deliver higher utility than would hiring or assignment. Disseminating worker strength information acts as a lever to influence participation and increase utility in the contest. Finally, while crowdsourcing is a good option for generic tasks, it might perform poorly for highly specialized tasks.

scholarly journals The role of related strategic alliances before mergers and acquisitions

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (10) ◽  
Author(s):  
Leonhard Brinster
Keyword(s):  
Mergers And Acquisitions ◽  
Strategic Alliances ◽  
Private Information ◽  
Target Selection ◽  
Trust Building ◽  
Significant Evidence ◽  
Transaction Process ◽  
Announcement Returns ◽  
Different Types

AbstractUsing mergers and acquisitions (M&A) deals by companies from the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry, this study analyzes the role of different types of prior ties between companies. The research distinguishes related alliances into direct and indirect alliances. Related alliances provide access to more information and can reduce transaction costs. The reduction of such costs can lead to a more successful target selection and a more efficient transaction process of the M&A deal because the time from announcement to completion can be reduced. This effect can be explained by trust-building, better access to private information, and certification through related alliances. However, in contrast to other studies, this study does not find statistically significant evidence that supports the hypothesis that alliances increase the post-M&A performance and that alliances are associated with higher announcement returns.

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