Hoarding in the age of COVID-19

Abstract

Hoarding is a well-established phenomenon in economics, often explored in the context of savings, financial speculation and employment. Conventional economic models of hoarding cannot, however, easily explain some of the unusual hoarding behaviours observed during the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper extends the economic analysis of hoarding by incorporating multidisciplinary explanations for some of the anomalies in hoarding observed during the COVID-19 crisis. This multidisciplinary approach suggests that behavioural economics and behavioural science can provide rich insights for policy-makers to use in adapting their policies to limit the negative economic, social and psychological impacts from anomalous hoarding behaviours during pandemics.