the cause of loss aversion lies in people's asymmetric emotional response to gain and loss. studies show that this asymmetry is particularly strong during the anticipation processing and the immediate experience after presenting the outcome. one study of income and well-being indicates that when people make loss-averse choices, it is not directly due to the loss itself but because the impact brings a series of negative consequences that follow the loss.a classic example presented in the book "thinking, fast and slow" of a flipping coin implies that people will first compare the satisfaction of gaining with the pain of losing before making a decision. thus, most people would not choose to participate in coin gambling with 50% to get $150 and 50% to lose $100; and according to the "loss aversion ratio," the minimum amount to fulfil the pain of losing $100 will be $200 (assume the coefficient is 2).