Smoking and Social Interaction

35 Pages Posted: 18 Apr 2007

See all articles by Panu Poutvaara

Panu Poutvaara

University of Helsinki - Department of Economics; Helsinki Center of Economic Research (HECER); CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute); IZA Institute of Labor Economics

Lars H.R. Siemers

University of Siegen

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: March 2007

Abstract

We study the social interaction of non-smokers and smokers as a sequential game, incorporating insights from social psychology and experimental economics into an economic model. Social norms affect human behavior such that non-smokers do not ask smokers to stop smoking and stay with them, even though disutility from smoking exceeds utility from social interaction. Overall, smoking is unduly often accepted when accommodating smoking is the social norm. The introduction of smoking and non-smoking areas does not overcome this specific inefficiency. We conclude that smoking bans may represent a required (second-best) policy.

Keywords: smoking policy, social norms, guilt aversion, deviant behavior, social interaction

JEL Classification: I18, D01, D11

Suggested Citation

Poutvaara, Panu and Siemers, Lars H.R., Smoking and Social Interaction (March 2007). CESifo Working Paper Series No. 1956, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=981113 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.981113

Panu Poutvaara (Contact Author)

University of Helsinki - Department of Economics ( email )

P.O. Box 54
FIN-00014 Helsinki
Finland

HOME PAGE: http://www.valt.helsinki.fi/blogs/poutvaar/

Helsinki Center of Economic Research (HECER) ( email )

FI-00014 Helsinki
Finland

CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute)

Poschinger Str. 5
Munich, DE-81679
Germany

IZA Institute of Labor Economics

P.O. Box 7240
Bonn, D-53072
Germany

Lars H.R. Siemers

University of Siegen ( email )

Department of Economics
Hoelderlinstr. 3
Siegen, 57068
Germany

HOME PAGE: http://sites.google.com/site/lhsiemers/

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