Skip to main content
Log in

Dynamic awareness and zero probability beliefs

  • Published:
Theory and Decision Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

In this note, it is shown that in a Bayesian model with unawareness of impossible (probability zero), or vanishingly improbable, events, awareness can only change after such an improbable event has actually been observed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Grant, S., & Quiggin, J. (2013). Inductive reasoning about unawareness. Economic Theory, 54(3), 717–55.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Halpern, J., & Rego, L. (2014). Extensive games with possibly unaware players. Mathematical Social Sciences, 70(1), 42–58.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heifetz, A., Meier, M., & Schipper, B. (2006). Interactive unawareness. Journal of Economic Theory, 130(1), 78–94.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Karni, E., & Viero, M.-L. (2013). Reverse bayesianism: a choice-based theory of growing awareness. American Economic Review, 103(7), 2790–2810.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Li, J. (2008). A note on unawareness and zero probability, PIER Working Paper No. 08-022

  • Meier, M., & Schipper, B. (2013). Bayesian games with unawareness and unawareness perfection, Working paper.

  • Modica, S. (2008). Unawareness, priors and posteriors. Decisions in Economics and Finance, 31(2), 81–94.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schipper, B. (2016). The unawareness bibliography, http://www.econ.ucdavis.edu/faculty/schipper/unaw.htm

  • Taleb, N. (2007). The black swan: The impact of the highly improbable. New York: Random House.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to John Quiggin.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Quiggin, J. Dynamic awareness and zero probability beliefs. Theory Decis 83, 309–313 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11238-016-9580-x

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11238-016-9580-x

Keywords

Navigation