Abstract:This paper explores “free-baiting” as a behavioral policy tool for reducing participation in socially undesirable activities. Empirical evidence establishes that when a good or activity ceases to be free, consumption plummets. A free-baiting policy creates conditions of freeness in order to subsequently take advantage of the discouraging effects of freeness removal. The initial free phase shifts consumers’ reference price for the target activity to zero. Subsequently, prices are returned to market levels – a s… Show more
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