A theory of mood-influenced consumption and investment in health

Authors

Michael Caputo, University of Central Florida
Amnon Levy, University of WollongongFollow

RIS ID

52270

Publication Details

Caputo, M. & Levy, A. (2012). A theory of mood-influenced consumption and investment in health. Mathematical Social Sciences, 63 (3), 218-227.

Abstract

A mood-utility link is incorporated into a theory of rational consumption and investment in personal health, whereby one's mood worsens as instantaneous utility falls below a threshold but improves as instantaneous utility rises above it. The analysis is conducted within an intertemporal framework, where instantaneous utility is gained and lost and good and bad moods are experienced along a health-dependent random lifespan. The qualitative properties of the resulting optimal control model are investigated by making use of the Frischian form of the feedback demand functions. One of several surprising results derived from this framework is that the marginal value of health can be negative or positive, whereas the marginal values of wealth and mood are unambiguously positive.