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on Cognitive and Behavioural Economics |
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Issue of 2015‒03‒27
twelve papers chosen by Marco Novarese Università degli Studi del Piemonte Orientale “Amedeo Avogadro” |
| By: | Shaun Hargreaves Heap (King's College London); Abhijit Ramalingam (University of East Anglia); David Rojo Arjona (University of Leicester) |
| Abstract: | Social information 'nudges' concerning how others perform typically boost individual performances in experiments with one group reference point. However, in many natural settings, sometimes due to policy, there are several such group reference points. We address the complications that such multiple group social information might introduce through an experiment. The boost to average performance is significant and comparable to the one group case. Between-group inequality does not change. Individual inequality falls, however, because the boost is largest among the pre-‘nudge’ very poor performers. Finally, the boost to average performance is highest when individuals freely choose their group affiliations. |
| Keywords: | social comparison, nudge, effort provision, reference points |
| JEL: | C91 D03 D60 |
| Date: | 2015–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:uea:wcbess:15-02&r=cbe |
| By: | Hitoshi Shigeoka; Katsunori Yamada |
| Abstract: | Economists have long been concerned that negative attitudes about relative income reduce social welfare. This paper investigates whether such attitudes can be mitigated by a simple information treatment. Toward this end, we conducted an original randomized online survey experiment in the US and the UK. As a baseline result, we find that UK respondents compare their incomes with othersf at a much higher rate than US subjects do. Additionally, we find that our information treatment---suggesting that comparing income with others may diminish their welfare even when income levels are actually increasing---made respondents compare incomes more, rather than less. Interestingly, we find such effects only among UK respondents. The mechanism for this among UK respondents seems to be driven by those who are initially less comparison-conscious becoming more comparison-conscious, indicating that our information treatment gives moral glicenseh to make comparisons by informing that others actually do. |
| Date: | 2015–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dpr:wpaper:0930&r=cbe |
| By: | Ömer Beyhan (Necmettin Erbakan Üniversity Ahmet KeleÅŸoğlu Education Faculty) |
| Abstract: | Game is the most natural learning tool. Game platform is the place where the child may test what he/she saw and heard, and reinforced what he/she learned. Child makes clear his/her senses by playing games, he/she improves the psychomotor skills by games. Game platform is the experiment room of a child. Such a room that, child attempts several trials there independently. He/she does, breaks, and applies different possibilities freely. In his/her small world, he/she makes the rules and changes them by himself/herself (Yörükoğlu, 1979). In this context, the effect of game method on the achievement while teaching geometry subjects of fifth class Mathematics course was analyzed. In this study, an experimental method, including pre-test and post-test control groups, was used in order to reveal student achievement of classes with and without being exposed to game method. While determining experimental and control groups, two classes out of four fifth classes were selected randomly. And 5-A class was selected as experimental group and 5-B class was selected as control group randomly. Forty one fifth grade students from two classes of Konya Hasan Ali Yücel Elementary School participated to this study during 2010-2011Spring terms. In order to analyze the data of this study, we preferred to use frequency, percentage distribution, standard deviation and t-test as statistical techniques. The data derived from the measurements was arranged by SPSS program on the computer. When we compared the significant difference between experimental and control groups, we observed that the students in the experimental group achieved pretty much than control group students. The experimental method applied in this study generated a remarkable difference in favor of the experimental group. |
| Keywords: | Game method, Teaching geometry, Mathematics course, Achievement, Experimental research |
| JEL: | I21 |
| Date: | 2014–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:0902179&r=cbe |
| By: | Sean P. Hargreaves Heap (King's College London); Abhijit Ramalingam (University of East Anglia); Siddharth Ramalingam (IDFC Foundation); Brock V. Stoddard (University of South Dakota) |
| Abstract: | Teams often suffer from a free rider problem with respect to individual contributions. That putting teams into competition with each other can mitigate this problem is an important recent insight. However, we know little about how inequality in endowment between teams might influence this beneficial effect from competition. We address this question with an experiment where teams contribute to a public good that then determines their chances of winning a Tullock contest with another team. The boost to efforts from competition disappears when inequality is high. This is mainly because the ‘rich’ ‘disengage’: they make no more contribution to a public good than they would when there is no competition. There is evidence that the ‘poor’ respond to moderate inequality ‘doggedly’, by expending more effort compared to competition with equality, but this ‘doggedness’ disappears too when inequality is high. |
| JEL: | C91 C92 D63 H41 |
| Date: | 2015–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:uea:wcbess:13-08-r&r=cbe |
| By: | Markus Schaffner; Jayanta Sarkar; Benno Torgler; Uwe Dulleck |
| Abstract: | To explore the effects of daylights saving time (DST) transition on cognitive performance and risk-taking behaviour immediately before and one week after the shift to DST, this study examines two Australian populations living in similar geographic surroundings who experience either no DST transition (Queensland) or a one-hour DST desynchronization (New South Wales). This exogenous variation creates natural control (QLD) and treatment (NSW) groups that enable isolation and identification of the DST transition’s effect on the two outcome variables. Proximity to the border ensures similar socio-demographic and socio-economic conditions and thus permits comparison of the cognitive performance and risk-taking behaviour of affected versus unaffected individuals. The results suggest that exposure to the DST transition has no significant impact on either cognitive performance or risk-taking behaviour. |
| Keywords: | Daylight Saving Time; Risk-Taking Behaviour; Cognitive Performance; Field Experiment |
| JEL: | D81 C93 C21 I1 |
| Date: | 2015–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cra:wpaper:2015-06&r=cbe |
| By: | Jana Gallus |
| Abstract: | This natural field experiment tests the effects of purely symbolic awards on volunteer retention in a public goods context. The experiment is conducted at Wikipedia, which faces declining editor retention rates. Randomization assures that receipt of the award is orthogonal to previous performance. The analysis reveals that awards have a sizeable and statistically significant effect on retention. The findings are noteworthy firstly for showing that symbolic awards with no career-related implications can positively impact behavior. Secondly, they indicate that the awards' motivating effect goes beyond serving reputational concerns and even positively affects recipients' private identity. |
| JEL: | C93 M52 H41 |
| Date: | 2015–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cra:wpaper:2015-05&r=cbe |
| By: | Heller, Yuval; Mohlin, Erik |
| Abstract: | We study stable behavior when players are randomly matched to play a game, and before the game begins each player may observe how his partner behaved in a few interactions in the past. We present a novel modeling approach and we show that strict Nash equilibria are always stable in such environments. We apply the model to study the Prisoner's Dilemma. We show that if players only observe past actions, then defection is the unique stable outcome. However, if players are able to observe past action profiles, then cooperation is also stable. Finally, we present extensions that study endogenous observation probabilities and the evolution of preferences. |
| Keywords: | Evolutionary stability, random matching, indirect reciprocity, secret handshake, submodularity, image scoring. |
| JEL: | C72 C73 D01 |
| Date: | 2015–03–19 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:63013&r=cbe |
| By: | Hossein Fakorihajiyar (Department of Education, Azadshahr Branch, Islamic Azad University, Azadshahr, Iran); Alireza Homayouni (Department of Psychology, Bandargaz Branch, Islamic Azad University, Bandargaz, Iran); Hossein Daeezadeh (Department of Education, Bandargaz Branch, Islamic Azad University, Bandargaz, Iran); Babak Hosseinzadeh (Department of Education, Babol Branch, Islamic Azad University, Babol, Iran) |
| Abstract: | Introduction & Aim: Emotional intelligence (EQ) is the ability to identify, use, understand, and manage emotions in positive ways to relieve stress, communicate effectively, empathize with others, overcome challenges, and defuse conflict. Emotional intelligence impacts many different aspects of your daily life, such as the way you behave and the way you interact with others. So, the present research investigated the relationship of emotional intelligence and mental health with achievement motivation in university students. Method: The sample comprised of 382 university students was taken from the university. Participants completed validated measures of Shutte self report emotional intelligence test (SSREIT), Goldberg general health questionnaire (GHQ) and Kamkar & Bahari achievement motivation scale. Results: Findings revealed positive significant correlation between emotional intelligence with achievement motivation. Although, there is correlation between mental health with achievement motivation, but the correlation was not significant. Conclusion: It means that increasing of emotional intelligence increase achievement motivation. Findings of the present research can have important psychological implications in the area of student counseling, adolescent and youth counseling, and personality development. Helping students and youth in regarding of emotional intelligence can improve their emotional competencies, decrease mental illness and help improving their quality of life and academic achievement. |
| Keywords: | Emotional Intelligence, mental health, achievement motivation, university students |
| Date: | 2014–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:0100077&r=cbe |
| By: | SERDAR YILDIZ (ANADOLU UNIVERSITY) |
| Abstract: | Absurdity is widely used in advertising, whereas the empirical studies on effects of absurdity in advertising are limited. This study is an experimental research to examine the effects of absurdity in advertising on consumers’ attitude toward the ad and recall. The presence and absence of a visual absurd stimulus was tested with print ads that were created for a fictitious outdoor clothing brand. It was hypothesized that using absurd elements in the print ad leads to more positive attitudes toward the ad than the non-absurd version of the same ad. It was also hypothesized that absurdity increases the recall of the brand name and the slogan. A student sample consisting of 160 subjects were chosen from 5 different faculties of Anadolu University. They were randomly assigned to two equivalent treatment groups according to viewing absurd or non-absurd print ads. As a result of the literature review it was noted that the product category attitude or involvement might moderate the effect of absurdity. Thus, the product category involvement was considered as a confounding variable and measured for all subjects. It was proved that both of the treatment groups were equivalent on the basis of involvement, age and gender. The results supported the hypothesis about the attitude toward the ad. The subjects who viewed the absurd ad had more positive attitudes toward the ad than the ones who viewed the non-absurd ad. On the other hand, the hypothesis on recall was partially supported. As a result of the unaided recall test it was found that absurdity increases the brand name recall. However, there was not a significant difference on slogan recall. Additionally, the results of the content analysis of the unaided recall test sheets revealed that the visual absurd element of the ad might cause misremembering of the slogan, because it was seen that a remarkable number of the subjects who viewed the absurd ad misremembered the slogan. At the end, all the findings were discussed; managerial implications were stated and further research areas were suggested to make a contribution to advertising and consumer research studies. |
| Keywords: | Absurdity, Advertising, Attitude toward the ad, Recall |
| Date: | 2014–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:0702020&r=cbe |
| By: | Denis Gerstorf; Gizem Hülür; Johanna Drewelies; Peter Eibich; Sandra Duezel; Ilja Demuth; Paolo Ghisletta Elisabeth Steinhagen-Thiessen; Gert G. Wagner; Ulman Lindenberger |
| Abstract: | How socio-cultural contexts shape individual functioning is of prime interest for psychological inquiry. Secular increases favoring later-born cohorts in fluid intelligence measures are widely documented for young adults. In the current study, we quantify such trends in old age using data from highly comparable participants living in a narrowly defined geographical area and examine whether these trends generalize to quality of life indicators. To do so, we compared data obtained 20 years apart in the Berlin Aging Study (in 1990–93) and the Berlin Aging Study II (in 2013–14), applied a case-matched control design (per cohort, n = 161, Mage = 75), quantified sample selection using a nationally representative sample as the reference, and controlled for number of physical diseases. The later cohort performed better on the fluid intelligence measure (d = .85) and reported higher morale, less negative affect, and more positive affect (ds > .39) than the earlier cohort. We conclude that secular advances have resulted in better cognitive performance and perceived quality of life among older adults and discuss when and how advantages of later cohorts reach their limits. |
| Keywords: | Cohort, cognitive ability, well-being, sociocultural factors, individual differences |
| Date: | 2015 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:diw:diwsop:diw_sp738&r=cbe |
| By: | Su Jung Lee (korea university); Ji Hae Lee (korea university); Eunhye Park (korea university); Sang Min Lee (korea university) |
| Abstract: | Procrastination is a general phenomenon among college students and is one of the major reasons for students to visit the counseling center for help. Many researches reported that procrastinators report “concern over mistakes†as one of the main reasons to persist in procrastinating. Having “concern over mistakes†implies catastrophic understanding of mistakes, regarding mistakes as failure. This perspective is also relevant to the notion of “fear of failure. Avoiding mistakes and fearing failure has been discussed as having a strong effect on procrastination. However, there are mixed findings suggesting that concern over mistakes predict more effort and less procrastination. Therefore, there lies the need to investigate whether there is a third variable that explain the relationship between “concern over mistakes†and procrastination. Previous literature notes “burnout†as having a close association with “concern over mistakesâ€. The purpose of this study is to examine the mediating effects of academic burnout on the relationship between concern over mistakes and state procrastination. The participants were 205 college students in total who took academic counseling in the student counseling center. Participants completed self-report measures of academic procrastination (Academic Procrastination State Inventory), academic burnout (Maslach Burnout Inventory–Student Survey), concern over mistakes (subscale of Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale). Structural equation modeling was used to test the mediational model derived from prior theory and research. Bootstrapping method was used to verify the significance of the mediation effect. The study results revealed that academic burnout fully mediated in the relation between concern over mistakes and procrastination and also contributed to the negative outcome of procrastination. Findings from the study indicate that as students become more preoccupied on their mistakes, they get more vulnerable to burnout, which leads to more procrastinating behavior. That is, concern over mistakes indirectly predicts procrastination. Implications on the counseling intervention involving academic burnout are discussed to promote better academic adjustment. |
| Keywords: | procrastination, concern over mistakes, academic burnout, mediation analysis, college students |
| Date: | 2014–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:0701543&r=cbe |
| By: | Ji Hae Lee (Korea University); Su jung Lee (Korea University); Eunhye Park (Korea University); Sang Min Lee (Korea University) |
| Abstract: | The purpose of our study was to explore the association between negative affect and psychological resilience and how experiential acceptance (vs experiential avoidance), in the context of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), weakened this association among university students. To test moderation effects of experiential acceptance, data of 213 university students were collected from three universities in Seoul and Gyeonggi province. The participants completed measures of negative affect (PANAS), experiential acceptance (AAQ), psychological resilience (CD-RISC). The results from the hierarchical regression analyses indicated that negative affect had a significant inverse relationship with psychological resilience. For the moderation effect, the simple effect analyses indicated that high utilization of experiential acceptance reduced the strength of inverse association between negative affect and resilience. The results showed a moderate negative relationship between negative affect and resilience in the high experiential acceptance condition, while a strong inverse relationship between negative affect and resilience was observed in the low experiential acceptance condition. That is, experiential acceptance was a significant moderator that buffered the relationship between negative affect and the outcome of resilience. The results are meaningful in that it supports the theoretical background of ACT through a correlational data while previous literature focused on the effectiveness of treatment results. Experiential acceptance may potentially protect against harm from negative affect while it may facilitate the individual to become more resilient. The literature may also give ideas for teachers and counselors in university settings to help their students regulate their negative affect through remaining in contact with their emotions through acceptance. |
| Keywords: | Negative affect, Experiential Acceptance, Psychological Resilience, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy(ACT), Moderation analysis |
| JEL: | I20 |
| Date: | 2014–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sek:iacpro:0701745&r=cbe |