A "winner's curse" on eBay?

EBay users who compulsively check items, imagine themselves owning a product or simply want bragging rights for placing a winning bid can experience a "winner's curse," in which a winning bid exceeds an item's true value. No one likes losing, and this often drives us to make winning a greater priority than the actual value of the product, says Paul A. Pavlou, associate professor at Temple's Fox School of Business. "As the duration of the auction prolongs, people feel attached to the product," Pavlou said of the "pseudo endowment effect."
Albany Times Union | June 5, 2011