I don’t want to hear about it: Rational ignorance among duty-oriented consumers

Individuals with a preference for keeping moral obligations may dislike learning that voluntary contributions are socially valuable: such information can trigger unpleasant feelings of cognitive dissonance. I show that if the initial belief about the social value of contributions is too low to merit a moral responsibility to contribute, duty-oriented consumers are willing to pay to avoid information. Information campaigns can make such consumers contribute by providing them with unwanted information.

► Duty-oriented individuals can strictly prefer avoiding information. ► This holds when prior beliefs do not justify a moral obligation to contribute. ► Campaigns can increase contributions through provision of unwanted information.