TY  - JOUR
AU  - Grinblatt,Mark
AU  - Keloharju,Matti
AU  - Ikaheimo,Seppo
TI  - Interpersonal Effects in Consumption: Evidence from the Automobile Purchases of Neighbors
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 10226
PY  - 2004
Y2  - January 2004
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w10226
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w10226.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
Mark Grinblatt
UCLA
Anderson Graduate School of Management
110 Westwood Plaza, Box 951481
Los Angeles, CA  90095-1481
Tel: 310/825-1098
Fax: 310/206-5455
E-Mail: mark.grinblatt@anderson.ucla.edu

Matti Keloharju
Helsinki School of Economics
P.O. Box 1210
00101 Helsinki
Finland 
E-Mail: matti.keloharju@hse.fi
AB  - This study analyzes the automobile purchase behavior of all residents of two Finnish provinces over several years. It finds that a consumer's purchases are strongly influenced by the purchases of his neighbors, particularly purchases in the recent past and by neighbors who are geographically most proximate. There is little evidence that emotional biases, like envy or an urge to conform, lie behind the interpersonal influence in automobile consumption. The most reasonable alternative explanation for these findings is some form of information sharing among neighbors.
ER  -