STICERD Economic Theory Seminars
Search: Breadth vs Depth
Michael Richter (Royal Holloway)
Thursday 02 March 2017 15:30 - 17:00
This event will take place online.
Many of our seminars and public events this year will continue as online seminars or as online and in person. Please check our website listings and Twitter feed @STICERD_LSE for updates.
Unless otherwise specified, current restrictions mean in-person seminars are only open to members of the LSE community (those with a valid LSE ID card).
Those unable to join the seminars in-person are welcome to participate via zoom.
About this event
We consider a fundamental trade-off in search: when choosing between multiple unknown alternatives, is it better to learn a little about all of them (breadth) or a lot about a single one (depth)? Generally, we find that breadth is optimal for “small” problems and that depth is optimal for “large” ones. We find that in a political setting where voters learn about candidates and find a rational justification for the stylized fact that voters tend to learn only about their preferred candidate. Finally, we consider extensions to fat-tails, correlation, and a strategic IO setting and find that in all extensions, breadth is superior.
Economic Theory Seminars are held on Thursdays in term time at 15:30-17:00, ONLINE or ONLINE AND IN PERSON at the same time.
Seminar organisers: Dr Andrew Ellis and Dr Francesco Nava.
For further information please contact Annie-Rose Nicholas by email: a.nicholas1@lse.ac.uk.
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This event will take place online.