DEMERIT GOOD: A good that society, usually government, deems is overvalued by consumers in normal market exchanges. As such, governments typically restrict the consumption of demerit goods through policies such as taxes or direct government control. Demerit goods are often have characteristics of quasi-public goods or externality by-products. Examples include tobacco and narcotic drugs. The counter type of good is a merit good.

     See also | good | good types | externalities | near-public good | quasi-public good | by-product | government functions | merit good | voluntary exchange |

DEMERIT GOOD, AmosWEB GLOSS*arama, http://www.AmosWEB.com, AmosWEB LLC, 2000-2018. [Accessed: December 9, 2018].

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Information is not equally available to everyone. Asymmetric information results because efficient information search inevitably stops short of compete information. Some people obtain more benefits from information than others, are willing to incur higher search costs, and thus end up knowing more. Or they incur lower information search costs and have easier access to the information. In a market, sellers tend to have more information about the good than buyers. Asymmetric information gives rise to adverse selection, moral hazard, and the principal-agent problem. These problems can be lessened through signalling and screening.

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Today, you are likely to spend a great deal of time browsing about a thrift store looking to buy either a remote controlled World War I bi-plane or a wall poster commemorating Thor Heyerdahl's Pacific crossing aboard the Kon-Tiki. Be on the lookout for telephone calls from long-lost relatives.
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