Review of Behavioral Economics > Vol 12 > Issue 1

Self-Image, Self-Signaling, and the Socially Adapted Mind

Arnaud Wolff, Institut Jean Nicod, Département d’études cognitives, Ecole normale supérieure, Université PSL, EHESS, CNRS, France AND Bureau d’Économie Théorique et Appliquée, Université de Strasbourg, France, arnaud.wolff@ens.psl.eu
 
Suggested Citation
Arnaud Wolff (2025), "Self-Image, Self-Signaling, and the Socially Adapted Mind", Review of Behavioral Economics: Vol. 12: No. 1, pp 69-96. http://dx.doi.org/10.1561/105.00000204

Publication Date: 23 Jan 2025
© 2025 A. Wolff
 
Subjects
Behavioral economics,  Psychology
 
Keywords
JEL Codes: D83, D91
Beliefsself-imageself-signalingsocial imagesocial incentives
 

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In this article:
Introduction 
Evolution Only Cares about Outcomes 
What is the Self? 
Learning and Spillovers 
Game-Theoretic Intuitions 
Self-Signaling Revisited 
Counterarguments 
Conclusion 
References 

Abstract

Recent work in behavioral economics has suggested that individuals derive utility from the beliefs that they hold. The objective of this paper is to reevaluate the idea that (i) individuals care about their self-image and (ii) individuals self-signal. I first argue that the desired self-image is best seen as the desired reputation. Then, I defend the idea that what appears to be self-signaling in the laboratory reflects the workings of a psychology well-adapted to the social incentives of everyday life, which spills over when individuals find themselves in new, contrived environments.

DOI:10.1561/105.00000204