부산대학교 도서관

People tend to set a higher price on the same good when they are in selling position (WTA; willingness to accept) than in buying position (WTP; willingness to pay). One of the main factors that affect this tendency is the availability of substitute. When there is an available substitute, people can obtain similar utility from it so that WTA and WTP will not exceed the price of the substitute and the disparity between WTA and WTP will be reduced. In experiment 1, we examined whether availability and subjective substitutability of the substitute can reduce WTA-WTP disparity. Results showed that availability of the substitute reduced the WTA-WTP disparity in median values but subjective substitutability did not. In experiment 2, we examined whether the quality of substitute can reduce the magnitude of WTA-WTP disparity. Results showed that magnitude of WTA-WTP disparity in high quality substitute available group was decreased by 20%, compared to that in low quality substitute available group in median value. In experiment 3, we examined whether price information of the substitute can reduce the WTA-WTP disparity. While one group(price group) was told the price of the substitute, the other group(control group) was not. Results showed that WTA was significantly higher than WTP even in the price group, but the median values of WTA and WTP in both groups became the same. Furthermore, magnitude of the disparity between WTA and WTP in price group was decreased by 55%, compared with control group. In sum, the results of three experiments indicate that the price information of substitute are more important factors than the availability of substitute, subjective substitutability, and qualitative difference of substitute. Finally, we suggested further research directions.