Editing Status quo bias (section)

=== Economic research ===
Status quo bias has a significant impact on economics research and policy creation. Anchoring and adjustment theory in economics is where people's decision-making and outcome are affected by their initial reference point. The reference point for a consumer is usually the status quo. Status quo bias results in the default option to be better understood by consumers compared to alternatives options. This results in the status quo option providing less uncertainty and higher expected utility for risk-averse decision makers.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Geng |first1=Sen |title=Decision Time, Consideration Time, and Status Quo Bias |journal=Economic Inquiry |date=January 2016 |volume=54 |issue=1 |pages=433–449 |doi=10.1111/ecin.12239|s2cid=153199766 }}</ref> Status quo bias is compounded by loss aversion theory where consumers see disadvantages as larger than advantages when making decision away from the reference point.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kahneman |first1=Daniel |title=Maps of Bounded Rationality: Psychology for Behavioral Economics |journal=The American Economic Review |date=2003 |volume=93 |issue=5 |pages=1449–1475 |doi=10.1257/000282803322655392 |jstor=3132137 |url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/3132137 |access-date=20 April 2023 |issn=0002-8282|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Economics can also describe the effect of loss aversion graphically with a consumer’s utility function for losses having a negative and 2 times steeper curve than the utility function for gains.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kahneman |first1=Daniel |title=Maps of Bounded Rationality: Psychology for Behavioral Economics |journal=The American Economic Review |date=2003 |volume=93 |issue=5 |pages=1449–1475 |doi=10.1257/000282803322655392 |jstor=3132137}}</ref> Therefore, they perceive the negative effect of a loss as more significant and will stay with status quo.  Consumers choosing the status quo goes against rational [[consumer choice]] theory as they are not maximising their utility. Rational consumer choice theory underpins many economic decisions by defining a set of rules for [[consumer behaviour]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Gerasímou |first1=Georgios |title=Consumer theory with bounded rational preferences |journal=Journal of Mathematical Economics |date=September 2010 |volume=46 |issue=5 |pages=708–714 |doi=10.1016/j.jmateco.2010.08.015|url=https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/18673/1/MPRA_paper_18673.pdf }}</ref> Therefore, status quo bias has substantial implications in economic theory.