- | F.A. Hayek Program F.A. Hayek Program
- | Mercatus Original Podcasts Mercatus Original Podcasts
- | Hayek Program Podcast Hayek Program Podcast
"Escaping Paternalism" Book Panel
On this episode of the Hayek Program Podcast, we'll listen in on an exciting book panel discussion of Escaping Paisternalism
- | Academic & Student Programs Academic & Student Programs
- | Journal Articles Journal Articles
Inclusive Rationality
In Escaping Paternalism: Rationality, Behavioral Economics, and Public Policy Rizzo and Whitman challenge behavioral economics
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
The Subtle Economics Of Private World Of Warcraft Servers
Anne Hobson and Leo Plumer write on the peculiarities of the anarchic in-game economy in World of Warcraft.Read it at TechDirt.
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Income inequality often a result of choice
Donald Boudreaux writes on the factors influencing income inequality, and how much of it may boil down to personal choice.Read
- | Urban Economics Urban Economics
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
More Pro Teams Should Move to the Sun Belt
Adam Millsap explores the economics of location in professional sports in an article for Forbes.Read it here: More Pro Teams
- | Urban Economics Urban Economics
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Vancouver, Cincinnati Show Cities Can Improve Land-Use Regulations
Bad local policy can lead to unaffordable housing markets in major cities. Thankfully, cities like Vancouver and Cincinnati are
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
The Elderly Aren't Actually Dragging Down the Economy
The American population is aging. Is that bad for the economy? Not necessary, writes Bruce Yandle at the Washington Times. The
- | Financial Markets Financial Markets
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
What We’re Reading: February 23, 2018
Here’s a quick round-up of some of the links shared by Mercatus Center scholars this week:Brian Knight warns that relying on the
- | Regulation Regulation
- | Books Books
Nudge Theory in Action
This collection challenges the popular but abstract concept of nudging, demonstrating the real-world application of behavioral economics in policy-making and technology.

- | Regulation Regulation
- | Working Papers Working Papers
Weight Loss Nudges: Market Test or Government Guess?
Discussion of how nudging by governments differs from nudging by markets leads to the conclusion that market nudging is the more promising avenue of the two for helping citizens lose weight.
- | Regulation Regulation
- | Policy Briefs Policy Briefs
Behavioral Economics and Biased Regulators
Behavioral economics (BE) examines the implications for decision-making when actors suffer from cognitive flaws documented in the psychological literature. Broadly, BE replaces the assumption of rationality—that errors tend to cancel out over time and across populations, so on average firms and consumers act as if they were rational—with one of “bounded rationality.” When actors are boundedly rational, their cognitive flaws lead to systematic errors and self-control problems. It should come as no surprise that BE has become an increasingly common justification for regulatory intervention.
- | Regulation Regulation
- | Data Visualizations Data Visualizations
Are You Too Irrational to Choose the Right Appliance?
New energy-efficiency regulations are sold to the public as a benefit to the environment. Regulatory agencies’ own estimates, however, demonstrate that the environmental benefits are only a fraction of the total benefits of these rules and are often exceeded by the societal costs they impose. These costs are passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices on everyday appliances such as microwave ovens, clothes dryers, refrigerators, and room air conditioners.

- | Regulation Regulation
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Setting the ‘Nudge Squad’ on Unruly Consumers
Regulators, after all, are human and, therefore, subject to the same biases and irrational errors as everyone else. Supreme Court Justice Stephen G. Breyer has pointed out that regulators are particularly vulnerable to “tunnel vision,” where they lose sight of the larger picture as they focus on low-probability risks. Government should not be in the business of making or shaping choices for adults. Regulations should preserve choices. Limiting options should never be counted as a benefit in the strict benefit-cost analysis that is part of any rule-making initiative. Nudges and shoves hurt — and the poor suffer the most.
- | F.A. Hayek Program F.A. Hayek Program
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Empirics and Psychology: Eight of the World’s Top Young Economists Discuss Where Their Field Is Going
To get the pulse of a field in flux, I asked eight of the world’s top young economists to identify the biggest unanswered questions in economics and predict what breakthroughs will define it a decade or two hence. The interview features BB&T Professor for the Study of Capitalism at the Mercatus Center Peter Leeson.
- | Regulation Regulation
- | Expert Commentary Expert Commentary
Energy Efficiency Regulations Set Dangerous Precedent
One-size-fits-all energy efficiency mandates ignore the substantial diversity of preferences, financial resources, and personal situations that consumers and firms must align in order to make purchase decisions.
- | Regulation Regulation
- | Working Papers Working Papers
Overriding Consumer Preferences With Energy Regulations
Environmental regulatory standards have a negligible effect on greenhouse gases and the preponderance of the estimated benefits stems from private benefits to consumers, based on the regulators' presumption of consumer irrationality.
- | Working Papers Working Papers
Democracy and the Economy: An Analysis of Buchanan's Views on Political Psychology
Buchanan´s notion of “parental socialism” refers to the attitude of many persons who are “afraid to be free” and do not want to face "responsibility for their own actions". His diagnosis is that this
- | F.A. Hayek Program F.A. Hayek Program
- | Journal Articles Journal Articles
Self-Deception as the Root of Political Failure
This papers considers models of political failure based on self-deception. Individuals discard free information when that information damages their self-image and thus lowers their utility. More