Non-rationality in belief sets: Implications for the theory of rational expectations

Although much research supports the proposition contained within the theory of expectations that a causal relationship exists between beliefs and attitudes, little is known about the extent to which logical consistency exists among beliefs about objects in relation to beliefs about reasonable substitutes for them, and the effect of this potential inconsistency on estimates of the belief-attitude relationship. In this study the logical consistency of 364 Japanese consumers’ expressions of beliefs and attitudes were tested regarding eating beef produced by three different countries. The results, which demonstrate significant inconsistency – or non-rationality – in belief sets, are discussed with respect to their implications for estimating belief-attitude relationships.