A tale of two ambiguities: A conceptual overview of findings from economics and psychology

Abstract

Ambiguity seems to be ... an ambiguous concept. While it has received attention from researchers from many disciplines, scientists from different backgrounds have put forward divergent, often vague and contrasting definitions of ambiguity. This conceptual impasse has somewhat obstructed cross-fertilization of insights across disciplines and has slowed the convergence of the results. Here, we examine the literature from economics and psychology, trace a map of intellectual knowledge on ambiguity in both disciplines and highlight open questions. Finally, we discuss some recent theoretical developments that could offer a unifying frame of reference for the study of ambiguity