English

Rationalizability, Cost-Rationalizability, and Afriat's Efficiency Index

General Economics 2024-07-23 v2 Economics

Abstract

This note explains the equivalence between approximate rationalizability and approximate cost-rationalizability within the context of consumer demand. In connection with these results, we interpret Afriat's (1973) critical cost efficiency index (CCEI) as a measure of approximate rationalizability through cost inefficiency, in the sense that an agent is spending more money than is required to achieve her utility targets.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2406.10136,
  title  = {Rationalizability, Cost-Rationalizability, and Afriat's Efficiency Index},
  author = {Matthew Polisson and John K. -H. Quah},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2406.10136},
  year   = {2024}
}
R2 v1 2026-06-28T17:06:18.824Z