A Theory of Fads, Fashion, Custom, and Cultural Change as Informational Cascades
Bikhchandani, Hirshleifer and Welch define an informational cascade as the point at which it is optimal for an individual who has seen the actions of those ahead to follow the preceding behaviour regardless of his own information. They argue that localised conformity of behaviour and the fragility of mass behaviours can be explained by such cascades.
Bikhchandani, Hirshleifer and Welch define an informational cascade as the point at which it is optimal for an individual who has seen the actions of those ahead to follow the preceding behaviour regardless of his own information. They argue that localised conformity of behaviour and the fragility of mass behaviours can be explained by such cascades.
Written from the abstract as shown on the OpenAlex record, read 2026-11-04.
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Bikhchandani, S., Hirshleifer, D., & Welch, I. (1992). A Theory of Fads, Fashion, Custom, and Cultural Change as Informational Cascades. Journal of Political Economy, 100(5), 992-1026. doi:10.1086/261849