“You inched towards the dark side,” joked one behavioural economist after he read a recent column in which I hinted that his field has some merits. It was a quip that got me thinking, because behavioural economics does indeed have a dark side. Behavioural economists study the psychology of economic decision-making, and if they are any good at their task they will discover something the unscrupulous salesman could use to his advantage.
我曾在近期的一篇专栏中暗示，行为经济学有一定的价值。读罢此文，一位行为经济学家开玩笑说：“你在慢慢滑向黑暗面”。这句一语双关的话让我深思，因为行为经济学的确有其黑暗面。行为经济学家们研究经济决策的心理；他们只要擅长自己工作，就会发现某些毫无廉耻的推销员会籍以牟利的伎俩。
A behavioural economist turned rogue would exploit the “endowment effect” – a tendency for people to put a higher value on something that they feel they already own. He or she would also try to create the sense that consumers would lose out if they did not buy, because people seem to hate the idea of losing £5 much more than they like the idea of gaining £5.
一个从行为经济学家转行的无赖会利用“禀赋效应”(endowment effect)——这是一种人们将更高价值赋予感觉自己已拥有物品的趋势。他（或她）同样会试图制造出一种感觉：即如果消费者不购买，他们就会吃亏。因为人们对于失去5英镑的痛恨，似乎要远甚于获得5英镑的欣喜。