ESTIMATION OF A HETEROGENEOUS DEMAND FUNCTION WITH BERKSON ERRORS

Richard Blundell, Joel Horowitz, Matthias Parey

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

—Berkson errors are commonplace in empirical microeconomics. In consumer demand, this form of measurement error occurs when the price an individual pays is measured by the (weighted) average price paid by in-dividuals in a group (e.g., a county) rather than the true transaction price. We show the importance of Berkson errors for demand estimation with nonseparable unobserved heterogeneity. We develop a consistent estimator using external information on the true price distribution. Examining gasoline demand in the United States, we document substantial within-market price variability. Accounting for Berkson errors is quantitatively important. Imposing the Slutsky shape constraint reduces sensitivity to Berkson errors.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)877-889
Number of pages13
JournalReview of Economics and Statistics
Volume104
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 2022

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Social Sciences (miscellaneous)
  • Economics and Econometrics

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