|
on Experimental Economics |
|
Issue of 2024‒08‒19
43 papers chosen by |
| By: | Alem, Yonas (University of Gothenburg & Jameel Poverty Action Lab, J-PAL); Loeser, John (Development Impact Evaluation, World Bank); Mahajan, Aprajit (University of California, Berkeley) |
| Abstract: | The implications of commonly used money earlier or later (MEL) games for intertemporal behavior depend critically upon subjects’ choice bracketing. If subjects bracket narrowly, responses reflect preferences independent of subjects’ financial environment. Alternatively, if subjects bracket broadly, responses reflect subjects’ marginal returns to investment. We test both hypotheses in a lab-in-the-field experiment, which involves repeated MEL games, a large unconditional cash transfer, and an illiquid savings product. Subjects do not narrowly bracket – randomized cash transfers induce greater patience in MEL choices. Subjects do not broadly bracket either – they fail to arbitrage across equivalent MEL and savings opportunities. We provide a conceptual framework and present evidence that narrowly bracketing subjects drive the predictive power of MEL outcomes for financial choices, justifying the common practice of interpreting MEL choices as a proxy for time preferences rather than financial environment. |
| Keywords: | Time preferences; narrow bracketing; broad bracketing |
| JEL: | C93 D03 D11 D90 |
| Date: | 2024–06–24 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:gunefd:2024_009 |
| By: | Rezaee, Arman; Hirshleifer, Sarojini; Naseem, Mustafa; Raza, Agha Ali |
| Abstract: | This study examines the dissemination of (mis)information on a social media platform in Pakistan. It combines an intervention to disseminate official information about the COVID-19 pandemic across the platform with a randomized experiment that measures the impact of fully controlling access to pandemic-related misinformation. The two treatments rely on a higherintensity, ex-ante approach to moderating misinformation on the platform relative to the control, which relies on a more standard ex-post approach to moderation. In one treatment, no misinformation was allowed on the platform, while in the other, it was allowed with an official rebuttal. Controlling misinformation, as in the treatments, reduces platform usage by 41%, indicating a distaste for moderation. Furthermore, the treatments reduce exposure to official information by 29% more than they reduce exposure to misinformation. A conceptual framework posits that these findings can be explained by the fact that, in this setting, official information is more trusted, and thus is more widely disseminated, relative to misinformation. We find evidence for two potential mechanisms for the observed distaste for moderation. |
| Keywords: | Social and Behavioral Sciences, social media, misinformation, information, digital economy, political economy, development economics, health, COVID-19, field experiment, randomized controlled trial |
| Date: | 2023–10–25 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdl:globco:qt53n4q35z |
| By: | Surve, Aditi A. |
| Keywords: | Consumer/ Household Economics, International Development, Livestock Production/Industries |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea22:343650 |
| By: | Nathalie Etchart-vincent (CES - Centre d'économie de la Sorbonne - UP1 - Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique); Marisa Ratto (LEDa - Laboratoire d'Economie de Dauphine - IRD - Institut de Recherche pour le Développement - Université Paris Dauphine-PSL - PSL - Université Paris Sciences et Lettres - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique); Emmanuelle Taugourdeau (CREST - Centre de Recherche en Économie et Statistique - ENSAI - Ecole Nationale de la Statistique et de l'Analyse de l'Information [Bruz] - X - École polytechnique - ENSAE Paris - École Nationale de la Statistique et de l'Administration Économique - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique) |
| Abstract: | Our experimental study investigates the impact of information about others' tax behaviour on the subjects' subsequent tax decisions. A novel framework allows us to test the taste for social conformity and behavioural convergence hypothesis. Two kinds of individual information are introduced, namely information about the income reported on average, within the whole subject's group and within a subgroup, made of either peers or non peers and chosen by the subject. Our main results are fourfold. First, we replicate usual results as regards the influence of tax morale, probability of audit and redistribution on tax compliance. Second, our data show that many subjects are more interested in non-peers' than peers' tax behaviour. Third, with regard to our main point, our data display a huge variety of behavioural responses at the individual level. Roughly 50% of the subjects, most of whom are full tax compliers, are insensitive to others' tax behaviour, thereby exhibiting strong intrinsic preferences towards taxes. At the same time, our data provide strong evidence of behavioural convergence towards others' average behaviour, and a taste for social anti-conformity is also found for a minority of subjects. Finally, the kind of information appears to matter, and we find some asymmetry in upward and downward behavioural variations. |
| Keywords: | Tax compliance, Information, Tax morale, Peer effects, Social norms, Behavioral contagion, Social conformity, Artefactual field experiment |
| Date: | 2024–07–05 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:cesptp:hal-04635966 |
| By: | Radosveta Ivanova-Stenzel (TU Berlin); Michel Tolksdorf (TU Berlin) |
| Abstract: | We suggest a simple method to elicit individual preferences for algorithms. By altering the monetary incentives for ceding control to the algorithm, the menu-based approach allows for measuring, in particular, the degree of algorithm aversion. Using an experiment, we elicit preferences for algorithms in an environment with measurable performance accuracy under two conditions|the absence and the presence of information about the algorithm's performance. Providing such information raises subjects' willingness to rely on algorithms when ceding control to the algorithm is more costly than trusting their own assessment. However, algorithms are still underutilized. |
| Keywords: | algorithm aversion; delegation; experiment; preferences; |
| JEL: | C91 D83 D91 |
| Date: | 2024–07–30 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rco:dpaper:508 |
| By: | Wadehra, Shivani (School of Liberal Studies, University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, Dehradun, India); Nie, Zihan (Center for Innovation and Development Studies, Beijing Normal University, Zhuhai 519087, China); Alpizar, Francisco (Environmental and Natural Resource Economics Group, Department of Social Sciences, Wageningen University and Research, the Netherlands) |
| Abstract: | The provision of public goods often requires coordination among different actors. This is the case with waste management. If waste collectors collect waste separately, households would find it more worthwhile to segregate waste at home. If the households could segregate better at source, it would be cheaper for the waste collectors to collect waste separately and reduce processing costs and environmental impacts. However, neither collectors nor households have an incentive to engage in the required behavior if they do not expect the other party to change. In this paper, we aim to disentangle this chicken or egg causality problem with a large-scale intervention that provides a guaranteed segregated collection service and promotes waste segregation at source. Our study takes place in India, where waste management is an important concern. We find that a guaranteed service increases segregated waste only slightly, whereas encouraging households to segregate, given a guaranteed segregated service, increases the waste disposal rate by over 200% and the positive effect is in place even six months after the initial treatment. Our experimental design allows us to show that a reliable segregated waste collection service is key to successful household-side interventions. Breaking the vicious circle of waste segregation may require simultaneous actions from both parties. |
| Keywords: | waste segregation; collection service; information campaign |
| JEL: | Q00 |
| Date: | 2024–06–11 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:gunefd:2024_008 |
| By: | Valeria Maggian (Department of Economics, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice); Ludovica Spinola (Department of Economics, University of Milano-Bicocca) |
| Abstract: | A worker within a firm, or a researcher within the academia, is required to both cooperate with colleagues in team-projects and to compete with them for career progressions. Hence, within workplaces, individuals need to adapt when switching between tasks characterized by different levels of competitiveness and cooperativeness. We study experimentally whether males and females differently spill over their cooperative behaviour when playing indefinitely repeated Prisoner's Dilemmas, distinguished by two different levels of the competitiveness-cooperativeness index (CCI, Demuynck et al., 2022). Additionally, as the importance placed on competitiveness might differently impacts males and females' attitudes towards the task, in our Decomposition treatment we separately present its zero-sum component and its common interest component. Besides supporting the efficacy of the CCI, our results provide evidence that females are more likely than males to spill over their cooperative behaviour when switching from a low competitive environment to a high competitive one. |
| Keywords: | gender, spillover effects, competitiveness-cooperativeness, framing effects, choice architecture, laboratory experiment |
| JEL: | J16 C73 C92 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ven:wpaper:2024:09 |
| By: | Wang, Yue; Ma, Yue |
| Keywords: | Health Economics And Policy |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea22:343823 |
| By: | Narang, Jimmy |
| Abstract: | Do people believe a news story more if it is shared by a friend? Should they? I investigate this using experiments in India with 800 pairs of friends and a custom social-media platform. I find sharers can distinguish true from false stories but share both equally, making sharing uninformative about a story's truth. Receivers, however, interpret sharing as a sign of truth: they overestimate how well sharers’ beliefs predict veracity; discount how factors besides belief influence sharing decisions; and update the most on stories they least believed initially. Altogether, stories gain (unmerited) credibility from being shared by a friend |
| Date: | 2024–07–12 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:osfxxx:h7pue |
| By: | Bellani, Luna (Ulm University); Berriochoa, Kattalina (University of Konstanz); Kapteina, Mark (University of Konstanz); Schwerdt, Guido (University of Konstanz) |
| Abstract: | We study the effects of information on attitudes towards inheritance taxation using survey experiments fielded in Germany. We show that information about tax allowances increases demand for higher taxes and shifts public opinion from favoring abolition to supporting the tax. Effects are primarily due to a prevalent underestimation of tax allowances and the alteration of people's expectations of being affected by such taxes. In contrast, information highlighting the increasing proportion of inherited wealth only negligibly affects policy demand. Our results suggest that pocketbook motives and misinformation may contribute to explaining the paradox of limited demand for inheritance taxation despite growing inequality concerns. |
| Keywords: | capital taxation, equality of opportunity, inheritance tax, information, randomized experiment |
| JEL: | H20 D72 D83 |
| Date: | 2024–06 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17099 |
| By: | Harou, Aurelie P.; Tamim, Abdulrazzak |
| Keywords: | Food Security And Poverty |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea22:344029 |
| By: | Ham, Andrés (Universidad de los andes, Escuela de Gobierno Alberto Lleras Camargo); Maldonado, Darío (Universidad de los andes, Escuela de Gobierno Alberto Lleras Camargo); Weintraub, , Michael (Universidad de los andes, Escuela de Gobierno Alberto Lleras Camargo); Camacho, Andrés Felipe (Universidad de los andes, Escuela de Gobierno Alberto Lleras Camargo); Ramírez, Luisa (Universidad de los andes, Escuela de Gobierno Alberto Lleras Camargo) |
| Abstract: | This paper studies whether bartenders that adopt standardized practices can promote responsible alcohol consumption and subsequently reduce alcohol-attributable violence. We conduct a randomized experiment in four localities of Bogota´ in cooperation with Colombia’s largest brewery and Bogota’s Secretariat of Security, Coexistence, and Justice. Our ´ design allows estimating direct and spillover effects on reported incidents within and around bars. Results show that bartenders in treatment locations sell more water and food, thus contributing to more responsible alcohol consumption by patrons. We find no direct or spillover effects of these changes in consumption on brawls, but some improvement on other alcohol-related incidents. |
| Keywords: | Alcohol; bartenders; brawls; alcohol-related violence; crime. |
| JEL: | A20 |
| Date: | 2024–08–01 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:col:000547:021002 |
| By: | Holden, Stein T. (Centre for Land Tenure Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences); Tione, Sarah (Centre for Land Tenure Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences); Tilahun, Mesfin (Centre for Land Tenure Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences); Katengeza, Samson (Centre for Land Tenure Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences) |
| Abstract: | We study risky inter-temporal choice in a large random student sample (n=721) and a large rural sample (n=835) in Malawi. All respondents were exposed to the same 20 Multiple Choice Lists with a rapid elicitation method that facilitated the identification of near-future Certainty Equivalents of future risky prospects placed 6, 12, and 24 months into the future. The probabilities of winning in the risky future prospects varied and facilitated the estimation of probability weighting functions for the risky prospects placed 6 and 12 months into the future. The experiment is used to test whether decision errors can explain or be highly correlated with hyperbolic discounting and non-linear (inverse-S-shaped) probability weighting. We find evidence that decision errors are strongly correlated with hyperbolic discounting but do not find that decision errors are correlated with the strong inverse-S-shaped probability weighting (w(p)) patterns in our two samples. We find stronger S-shaped and more pessimistic w(p) functions for 6-month horizon risky prospects than for 12-month horizon risky prospects in both samples. Both patience and optimism bias contribute to subjects taking higher risks related to more risky distant future prospects. This can lead to the postponement of climate action. |
| Keywords: | Decision errors; discounting; risky inter-temporal choice; probability weighting; Malawi |
| JEL: | C91 C93 D81 D84 D91 |
| Date: | 2024–07–18 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:nlsclt:2024_003 |
| By: | Gatti, Nicolas |
| Keywords: | Production Economics |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea22:343759 |
| By: | Holden, Stein T. (Centre for Land Tenure Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences); Tione, Sarah Ephrida (Centre for Land Tenure Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences); Tilahun, Mesfin (Centre for Land Tenure Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences); Katengeza, Samson (Centre for Land Tenure Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences) |
| Abstract: | We investigate how random luck in repeated variants of the risky investment game of Gneezy, Leonard, and List (2009); Gneezy and Potters (1997) influences risk-taking and discounting behavior in future risky prospects with probabilistic payouts one week, six, 12, and 24 months into the future. We test non-parametrically whether luck enhances risk-taking and patience (reduces the discount rate) in risky prospects with delayed payouts. To investigate whether luck influences probability weighting (w(p) function), we estimate structural models with two-parameter Prelec probability weighting functions to decompose risk-taking in prospects with potential payouts six and 12 months into the future. We find that luck results in more optimistic (reduces the Prelec β parameter) and less non-linear (inverse-S-shaped) (increases the Prelec α parameter) w(p) function. We assess this for two samples from Malawi: one is a random sample of university students (n=721), and the other is a random sample (n=835) of rural subjects with limited education. The students were found to be more patient but had similar probability weighting functions. |
| Keywords: | Luck; Discounting; Risk-taking; Probability weighting |
| JEL: | C91 C93 D81 D84 D91 |
| Date: | 2024–07–18 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:nlsclt:2024_004 |
| By: | Ortiz-Riomalo, Juan Felipe; Engel, Stefanie; Koessler, Ann-Kathrin |
| Abstract: | Participatory vision-building (PVB) seems promising in fostering collective action to overcome complex social-environmental dilemmas and to attain socially desirable outcomes. By assisting the relevant actors in visualising their desired future and imagining how it would feel to be an active part of it, PVB makes the stated goals experiential, inspirational and meaningful, galvanising collective action. Nevertheless, it is still unclear whether PVB's causal impacts on collective action go beyond those of other elements of participatory processes that PVB also comprises, i.e. social interaction, information exchange and coordination around desirable strategies, outcomes or futures. We contribute to filling this gap through a (pre-registered) framed lab-in-the-field economic experiment conducted with 728 farmers from Lake Tota, Colombia. Participants chose between two stylised farming practices over multiple hypothetical growing seasons, impacting their seasonal earnings and the water levels of a hypothetical lake as a shared resource. We compare the behaviour of participants in a PVB treatment, in which they discussed and imagined a desired vision for the future, against the behaviour of participants in three control conditions. Albeit potentially effective for cooperation, the effects of PVB were found to be statistically indistinguishable from other participatory processes with similar aims. However, exploratory analysis suggests there might be potential impacts of PVB on emotions and preferences for pro-environmental and pro-social action. Future research could test the generalisability of our findings to other contexts, particularly those with heterogeneous interests, delve deeper into the underlying psychological mechanisms, and explore the interplay with other institutional mechanisms for fostering sustained collective action. |
| Keywords: | collective action, social dilemmas, natural resource management, participatory processes, participatory governance, visioning |
| JEL: | D02 D70 D91 H40 Q20 Q24 Q25 Q57 Q59 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:esprep:300582 |
| By: | Barinas-Forero, Andres (Universidad de los Andes) |
| Abstract: | While trust remains pivotal for economic growth in any society, its consistency over time is not guaranteed. External shocks such as economic crises or natural disasters can disrupt group trust dynamics. Through a laboratory experiment, this study examines the effects of random negative economic shocks on economic relations characterized by having a group of trustors and a group of trustees. The results indicate that such shocks decrease collective trust between groups due to two main factors: firstly, a decline in the trustor’s perceived trustworthiness of trustees; and secondly, a tendency for trustors to rely on the contributions of other trustors, leading to free-riding behavior. Furthermore, the experiment reveals that groups become less trustworthy following the shock, as trustees prioritize recovering economic gains from trust relations. This decline in collective trustworthiness is driven by diminished trustee’s beliefs in the trustworthiness of other trustees and trustees’ enforcing what they consider socially appropriate to do: return less after the shock. |
| Keywords: | Trust; Trustworthiness; Collective Trust; Negative Shocks; Groups; Laboratory Experiments |
| JEL: | C91 C92 D31 D91 |
| Date: | 2024–08–01 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:col:000089:021170 |
| By: | Kim, Da Eun; Ellison, Brenna |
| Keywords: | Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Consumer/ Household Economics |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea22:343811 |
| By: | James C. Cox; Vjollca Sadiraj; James M. Walker |
| Abstract: | This paper studies the effect of power asymmetry on resolution of social dilemmas in repeated play of linear public good games. The experiment uses a 2X2 design that crosses power symmetry or asymmetry in payoff-equivalent provision and appropriation games with positive (provision) or negative (appropriation) externalities. Power asymmetry combines privileged access to information with extended opportunity sets that allow for taking a public good provided or not appropriated by others. Our data suggest that power asymmetry has a detrimental effect on efficiency, with the effect being more pronounced in the asymmetric-power appropriation game. Individual allocations to the public good increase in others' allocations, suggesting that individual allocations are not strategic substitutes. With power asymmetry, first movers earn less than the second mover in the appropriation game but not in the provision game. |
| JEL: | C73 C52 H41 |
| Date: | 2024–07 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:exc:wpaper:2024-01 |
| By: | Heckenhahn, Jonas; Feldhaus, Christoph; Löschel, Andreas |
| Abstract: | Climate change can be addressed by mitigation and adaptation approaches at the national policy level. Since only limited resources are available for both strategies, it is key to unravel how ongoing climate developments and their communication influence the population's preferences regarding the question 'adaptation or mitigation?' Based on construal level theory and the construal matching premise, we hypothesize that when individuals are faced with an abstract tradeoff between mitigation and national adaptation, a larger national short-term risk perception extends prioritization of national adaptation measures, whereas an amplified global long-term risk perception or a lifted construal level of presented climate risks increases mitigation emphasis. To explore these hypotheses, we conducted an online framed field information experiment with a German population sample of 2, 182 participants and find evidence for the hypothesized causal effects by conducting OLS regressions and mediator analyses. We argue for reevaluating current climate communication's emphasis on psychologically close damages, as this approach may push people towards favoring adaptation strategies over essential mitigation measures and could thus entail undesirable side effects. |
| Abstract: | Der Klimawandel kann auf nationalpolitischer Ebene durch Minderung und Anpassung angegangen werden. Da für beide Strategien nur begrenzte Ressourcen zur Verfügung stehen, ist es von zentraler Bedeutung, herauszufinden, wie die aktuellen klimatischen Entwicklungen und deren Kommunikation die Präferenzen der Bevölkerung hinsichtlich der Frage 'Anpassung oder Minderung?' beeinflussen. Basierend auf der Construal Level Theory und der Prämisse des Construal Matching hypothetisieren wir, dass, wenn Individuen mit einer abstrakten Abwägungsentscheidung zwischen Minderung und nationaler Anpassung konfrontiert sind, eine größere national-kurzfristige Risikowahrnehmung die Priorisierung nationaler Anpassungsmaßnahmen erhöht, während eine verstärkte global-langfristige Risikowahrnehmung oder ein erhöhtes Construal Level der dargestellten Klimarisiken den Fokus auf Minderung stärkt. Um diese Hypothesen zu untersuchen, haben wir ein Online Framed Field Information Experiment mit einer deutschen Bevölkerungsstichprobe von 2.182 Teilnehmern durchgeführt und basierend auf OLS-Regressionen und Mediatoranalysen Evidenz für die hypothetisierten kausalen Effekte gefunden. Wir plädieren dafür, die Betonung psychologisch naher Schäden in der aktuellen Klimakommunikation zu überdenken, da dieser Ansatz Menschen dazu verleiten könnte, Anpassungsstrategien gegenüber essenziellen Minderungsmaßnahmen zu bevorzugen, und somit unerwünschte Nebeneffekte nach sich ziehen könnte. |
| Keywords: | Climate change mitigation, climate change adaptation, national adaptation strategies, psychological distance, construal level theory, risk perception, climate communication, information experiment |
| JEL: | Q54 D81 Q58 D91 C93 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:rwirep:300566 |
| By: | Shohei Yamamoto; Shuma Iwatani |
| Abstract: | This research examined the impacts of peer skill levels and perseverance through two experiments resembling online learning platforms. Study 1 recruited current English learners, while Study 2 involved participants who had not engaged in studying for more than six months. The results in both experiments revealed negative rather than positive peer effects. The participants ceased studying earlier and displayed reduced performance when learning with peers possessing lower perseverance, compared to when studying alone. This pattern was observed for similarly-skilled peers in Study 1 and higher-skilled peers in Study 2. Further analysis indicated that the negative peer effects predominantly originated from participants with lower levels of motivation. Additionally, it was shown that social proximity could foster positive effects when peers possess similar skills and higher perseverance levels. Our findings suggest that the strategic pairing of learners with appropriate partners is crucial for diminishing negative peer effects and enhancing positive peer influences. |
| Date: | 2024–04 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dpr:wpaper:1242r |
| By: | Charlie Pilgrim; Joshua Becker |
| Abstract: | Prior research offers mixed evidence on whether and when communication improves belief accuracy for numeric estimates. Experiments on one-to-one advice suggest that communication between peers usually benefits accuracy, while group experiments indicate that communication networks produce highly variable outcomes. Notably, it is possible for a group's average estimate to become less accurate even as its individual group members -- on average -- become more accurate. However, the conditions under which communication improves group and/or individual outcomes remain poorly characterised. We analyse an empirically supported model of opinion formation to derive these conditions, formally explicating the relationship between group-level effects and individual outcomes. We reanalyze previously published experimental data, finding that empirical dynamics are consistent with theoretical expectations. We show that 3 measures completely describe asymptotic opinion dynamics: the initial crowd bias; the degree of influence centralisation; and the correlation between influence and initial biases. We find analytic expressions for the change in crowd and individual accuracy as a function of the product of these three measures, which we describe as the truth alignment. We show how truth alignment can be decomposed into calibration (influence/accuracy correlation), and herding (influence/averageness correlation), and how these measures relate to changes in accuracy. Overall, we find that individuals can and usually do improve even when groups get worse. |
| Date: | 2024–06 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2407.00199 |
| By: | Cattaneo, Maria Alejandra (Swiss Co-ordination Center for Research in Education); Gschwendt, Christian (University of Bern); Wolter, Stefan C. (University of Bern) |
| Abstract: | Advances in technology have always reshaped labor markets. Automating human labor has lead to job losses and creation but most of all, for an increasing demand for highly skilled workers. However, emerging AI innovations like ChatGPT may reduce labor demand in high skilled occupations previously considered "safe" from automation. While initial studies suggest that individuals adjust their educational and career choices to mitigate automation risk, it is unknown what people would be willing to pay for a reduced automation risk. This study quantifies this value by assessing individuals' preferences for occupations in a discrete-choice experiment with almost 6'000 participants. The results show that survey respondents are willing to accept a salary reduction equivalent to almost 20 percent of the median annual gross wage to work in an occupation with a 10 percentage point lower risk of automation. Although the preferences are quite homogeneous, there are still some significant differences in willingness to pay between groups, with men, younger people, those with higher levels of education, and those with a higher risk tolerance showing a lower willingness to pay for lower automation risk. |
| Keywords: | artificial intelligence, automation, willingness to pay, survey experiment |
| JEL: | J24 O33 |
| Date: | 2024–06 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17097 |
| By: | Jessen, Lasse J.; Köhne, Sebastian; Nüß, Patrick; Ruhose, Jens |
| Abstract: | Using survey experiments in the United States and Germany with 12, 000 participants, we examine perceptions of life expectancy inequality between rich and poor people. The life expectancy of the poor is underestimated more than that of the rich, leading to exaggerated perceptions of inequality in both countries. Receiving accurate information narrows concerns about this inequality. However, the impact of information on policy demand is limited because support for policies addressing life expectancy for the poor is consistently high, regardless of varying perceptions of inequality. We conclude that there is strong and unconditional public support for health equity policies. |
| Keywords: | socioeconomic inequality in life expectancy, health care, information treatment, survey experiment |
| JEL: | C90 D71 D83 I14 I18 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:cauewp:300522 |
| By: | Sarah Miller; Elizabeth Rhodes; Alexander W. Bartik; David E. Broockman; Patrick K. Krause; Eva Vivalt |
| Abstract: | This paper provides new evidence on the causal relationship between income and health by studying a randomized experiment in which 1, 000 low-income adults in the United States received $1, 000 per month for three years, with 2, 000 control participants receiving $50 over that same period. The cash transfer resulted in large but short-lived improvements in stress and food security, greater use of hospital and emergency department care, and increased medical spending of about $20 per month in the treatment relative to the control group. Our results also suggest that the use of other office-based care—particularly dental care—may have increased as a result of the transfer. However, we find no effect of the transfer across several measures of physical health as captured by multiple well-validated survey measures and biomarkers derived from blood draws. We can rule out even very small improvements in physical health and the effect that would be implied by the cross-sectional correlation between income and health lies well outside our confidence intervals. We also find that the transfer did not improve mental health after the first year and by year 2 we can again reject very small improvements. We also find precise null effects on self-reported access to health care, physical activity, sleep, and several other measures related to preventive care and health behaviors. Our results imply that more targeted interventions may be more effective at reducing health inequality between high- and low-income individuals, at least for the population and time frame that we study. |
| JEL: | I12 I14 I3 |
| Date: | 2024–07 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:32711 |
| By: | Fabian Herweg (University of Bayreuth); Svenja Hippel (University of Bonn); Daniel Müller (University of Würzburg); Fabio Römeis (University of Würzburg) |
| Abstract: | In prosocial decisions, decision-makers are inherently uncertain about how their decisions impact others’ utility – we call this interpersonal uncertainty. We show that people's response to interpersonal uncertainty shapes well-known patterns of prosocial behavior. First, using standard social allocation decisions, we replicate the classic patterns of ingroup favoritism, merit-based fairness ideals, and self-favoring behavior in dictator games. We then show that these patterns also arise in non-social decisions which have no consequences for others and instead solely reflect responses to interpersonal uncertainty. Behavior across social and non-social decisions is highly correlated, and self-reported interpersonal uncertainty predicts behavior in both situations. Moreover, exogenously varying interpersonal uncertainty shifts prosocial behavior in the direction that avoids such uncertainty. Our results quantify how beliefs in the form of interpersonal uncertainty influence prosocial behavior, which we estimate to be of similar importance to social preferences. |
| Keywords: | Axiomatic rationality, Choice under risk, Context-dependent preferences, Mistakes, Regret theory |
| JEL: | C91 D01 D81 D91 |
| Date: | 2024–07 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ajk:ajkdps:326 |
| By: | Mehler, Maren F.; Krautter, Kai |
| Abstract: | Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) has become widespread in daily work but present novel challenges for users as previously meaningful tasks can now be completed by GenAI. This study examines the impact of ChatGPT on task performance and perceived meaningfulness in two programming tasks. In an online experiment (n=161) assigning participants to coding or debugging tasks, with and without ChatGPT assistance, we found that using ChatGPT improved task performance, partially because the supported tasks are less difficult. However, using ChatGPT resulted in lower perceived meaningfulness, partly because participants considered the tasks less effortful. Notably, both tasks exhibited slightly different results, indicating that contextual factors may amplify or mitigate the effects. This study emphasizes the dual nature of GenAI integration, balancing enhanced performance with psychological impacts on users. Our findings offer insights for organizations and developers on integrating GenAI, highlighting the importance of incorporating efficiency gains with the meaningfulness of human work. |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dar:wpaper:146774 |
| By: | Anujit Chakraborty (University of California); Luca Henkel (University of Chicago & University of CEMA) |
| Abstract: | In prosocial decisions, decision-makers are inherently uncertain about how their decisions impact others’ utility – we call this interpersonal uncertainty. We show that people's response to interpersonal uncertainty shapes well-known patterns of prosocial behavior. First, using standard social allocation decisions, we replicate the classic patterns of ingroup favoritism, merit-based fairness ideals, and self-favoring behavior in dictator games. We then show that these patterns also arise in non-social decisions which have no consequences for others and instead solely reflect responses to interpersonal uncertainty. Behavior across social and non-social decisions is highly correlated, and self-reported interpersonal uncertainty predicts behavior in both situations. Moreover, exogenously varying interpersonal uncertainty shifts prosocial behavior in the direction that avoids such uncertainty. Our results quantify how beliefs in the form of interpersonal uncertainty influence prosocial behavior, which we estimate to be of similar importance to social preferences. |
| Keywords: | Prosocial behavior, social preferences, ingroup versus outgroup decisions, dictator games, fairness preferences, interpersonal uncertainty |
| JEL: | C91 D01 D91 |
| Date: | 2024–07 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ajk:ajkdps:327 |
| By: | Peterson-Wilhelm, Bailey; Schwab, Benjamin |
| Keywords: | International Development, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Institutional And Behavioral Economics |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea22:343782 |
| By: | Chavent, Ann; Bartels, Anthony; Pion, Paul D.; Rishniw, Mark |
| Abstract: | OBJECTIVE: To assess whether VIN Foundation student debt counseling of newly graduated veterinarians impacts financial behavior and reduces stress associated with student debt management. SAMPLES: 143 class of 2021 newly graduated veterinarians. METHODS: Participants, randomly assigned to experimental and control groups, first completed a pre-study survey to assess their attitudes towards personal finance, their perceived importance of various components of financial well-being, their self-reported personal finance proficiency and behaviors, their student loan repayment priorities, intended strategy, and monthly repayment, and their satisfaction with the veterinary profession. The experimental group then received individual student loan counseling with a VIN Foundation counselor via an online questionnaire and message board. The control group received no counseling. Both groups completed a post-study survey concurrently at the conclusion of the study. RESULTS AND RELEVANCE: Approximately half of all participants chose income-driven repayment plans, whose lower monthly payments confer less cash flow risk in the volatile period after graduation. Some in the experimental group remained with riskier time-driven plans due to non-financial factors. The VIN Foundation student loan counseling correlated positively with the experimental group gaining confidence in their student loan repayment plans and their financial satisfaction, proficiency, and budgeting behaviors. The counseling also received high scores for satisfaction with the service. The persistently ambivalent feelings about the profession by study participants suggest a need for further study and solutions for the comprehensive well-being of new graduate veterinarians. |
| Date: | 2024–07–24 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:edarxi:7wk24 |
| By: | Rocco Caferra (Unitelma Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.); Andrea Morone (University of Bari Aldo Moro, Bari, Italy.); Piergiuseppe Morone (Unitelma Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.) |
| Abstract: | This paper explores the impact of risk and ambiguity on wealth redistribution, using an experimental dictator game. The findings show that wealth redistribution significantly declined in line with increased perceived risk, suggesting that heightened risk and ambiguity may reduce altruistic behavior. Gender differences in risk aversion were observed under conditions of risk (characterized by well-defined probability), but vanished under conditions of ambiguity. The study highlights the importance of risk perception in shaping social preferences and the potential use of ambiguity as a moral rationale to avoid engagement in pro-social behaviors and wealth redistribution. |
| Keywords: | Dictator Game; Subjective Probability; Decision-Making; Experiment; Social Preferences; Risk Preferences; Ambiguity Box. |
| JEL: | D80 D81 |
| Date: | 2024–07 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipu:wpaper:115 |
| By: | Fergusson, Leopoldo (Universidad de los Andes); Guerra, José-Alberto (Universidad de los Andes); Robinson, James A. (University of Chicago) |
| Abstract: | Since formal rules can only partially reduce opportunistic behavior, third-party sanctioning to promote fairness is critical to achieving desirable social outcomes. Social norms may underpin such behavior, but they can also undermine it. We study one such norm —the “don’t be a toad” norm, as it is referred to in Colombia— that tells people to mind their own business and not snitch on others. In a set of fairness games where a third party can punish unfair behavior, but players can invoke the “don’t be a toad” norm, we find that the mere possibility of invoking this norm completely reverses the benefits of third-party sanctioning to achieve fair social outcomes. We establish this is an anti-social norm in a well-defined sense: most players consider it inappropriate, yet they expect the majority will invoke it. To understand this phenomenon we develop an evolutionary model of endogenous social norm transmission and demonstrate that a payoff advantage from adherence to the norm in social dilemmas, combined with sufficient heterogeneity in the disutility of those who view the norm as inappropriate, can generate the apparent paradox of an anti-social norm in the steady-state equilibrium. We provide further evidence that historical exposure to political violence, which increased the ostracization of snitches, raised sensitivity to this norm. |
| Keywords: | social norms; fairness; long-run effects of conflict; laboratory experiment |
| JEL: | C91 D30 D74 D91 N46 |
| Date: | 2024–07–17 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:col:000089:021159 |
| By: | Ragasa, Catherine; Ma, Ning; Hami, Emmanuel |
| Abstract: | Many rural producer groups face poor management practices, low productivity, and weak market linkages. An information and communication technology (ICT)-based intervention bundle was provided to producer groups to transform them into ICT hubs, where members learn about and adopt improved management practices and increase their productivity and incomes. The intervention bundle includes phone messages and videos, promotion of the call center/hotline, and facilitation of radio listening clubs and collective marketing. The study, a cluster-randomized controlled trial, randomly assigned 59 groups into treatment groups and 59 into control groups. After 18 months of interventions, results show positive but small impact on crop sales (USD65 per household) and no impact on productivity. The income effect was mainly from Kasungu and Nkhota-kota, which experienced increased production and sales of rice, soybean, and groundnut and received higher prices due to collective marketing. Farmers in Kasungu and Nkhota-kota improved a few agricultural management practices, while farmers in other districts did not improve their management practices. Results show more farmers accessing phone messaging on agriculture and markets, greater awareness and use of the call center, more listening groups established, and more farmers—especially women—joining these groups. Nevertheless, coverage and uptake remain very low, which are likely reasons for the limited impact. |
| Keywords: | markets; Information and Communication Technologies; digital agriculture; digital extension tools; impact assessment; sales; productivity; agriculture; Africa; Eastern Africa; Malawi |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fpr:ifprid:2261 |
| By: | Preuss, Marcel (Cornell University); Reyes, Germán (Middlebury College); Somerville, Jason (Federal Reserve Bank of New York); Wu, Joy (University of British Columbia) |
| Abstract: | Support for redistribution depends on whether inequality stems from differences in performance or luck, but different sources of luck may impact redistribution differentially. We elicit redistribution decisions from a U.S.-representative sample who observe worker earnings and whether luck influenced their earnings directly ("lucky outcomes") or indirectly by providing a relative advantage ("lucky opportunities"). Participants redistribute less under lucky opportunities. When assessing the impact of unequal opportunities, individuals rely on a heuristic that leads them to underestimate how even a small relative advantage can substantially influence worker earnings. Our findings highlight the role of inferential challenges in shaping attitudes towards inequality. |
| Keywords: | unequal opportunities, inequality, redistribution, luck |
| JEL: | C91 D63 |
| Date: | 2024–07 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17155 |
| By: | Du, Qianqian; Mieno, Taro; Bullock, David S. |
| Abstract: | Accurately evaluating yield response to nitrogen can increase crop management profitability and sustainability. Many studies estimate yield response by fitting a regression model to data collected from different fields. But analysing such combined data requires that heterogeneity across fields be accounted for in the regression analysis along with the variation in input rates. This study uses data from 27 large-scale on farm experiments to test the potential danger of getting biased estimates of yield response functions. Models with and without field fixed effects are run. The yield response functions from the two models showed different slopes, which provides a visual representation of the bias resulting from the pooled estimation. Use of the Mundlak approach indicated that ignoring the endogeneity of regressors with respect to field effects leads to an unreliable estimation of yield response to N. |
| Keywords: | Crop Production/Industries, Productivity Analysis, Risk and Uncertainty |
| Date: | 2023–09–19 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:haaewp:344222 |
| By: | Du, Qianqian; Mieno, Taro; Bullock, David S. |
| Abstract: | Accurately evaluating yield response to nitrogen can increase crop management profitability and sustainability. Many studies estimate yield response by fitting a regression model to data collected from different fields. But analysing such combined data requires that heterogeneity across fields be accounted for in the regression analysis along with the variation in input rates. This study uses data from 27 large-scale on farm experiments to test the potential danger of getting biased estimates of yield response functions. Models with and without field fixed effects are run. The yield response functions from the two models showed different slopes, which provides a visual representation of the bias resulting from the pooled estimation. Use of the Mundlak approach indicated that ignoring the endogeneity of regressors with respect to field effects leads to an unreliable estimation of yield response to N. |
| Keywords: | Crop Production/Industries, Productivity Analysis, Risk and Uncertainty |
| Date: | 2023–09–19 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:haaepa:344222 |
| By: | Carvajal, Daniel (Dept. of Economics, Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration) |
| Abstract: | As society becomes increasingly diverse, will changes in an individual’s exposure to diversity influence their interactions with others? I study prosocial behavior in a large-scale U.S. sample, where participants are exogenously exposed to social contexts with varying levels of nationality diversity. I find that diverse contexts amplify participants’ ingroup bias—the tendency to favor one’s own group—driven by increased allocations towards fellow nationals and decreased allocations to foreigners, relative to giving in homogeneous contexts where such bias is not present. A change in perceptions of social proximity corresponds to a driver of the effect of diversity in allocations. The findings are consistent across subgroups of the population, which suggests that the study identifies a general heuristic through which individuals identify with groups, where social context—and not only individual characteristics—is key for the emergence of ingroup bias. |
| Keywords: | social context; diversity; prosocial behavior; ingroup biasM social proximity |
| JEL: | D64 D91 |
| Date: | 2024–07–30 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:nhheco:2024_014 |
| By: | Bloebaum, Anke; Schmidt, Karolin; Böcher, Michael; Arlinghaus, Julia; Krause, Friederike; Matthies, Ellen |
| Abstract: | The overall research objective of the present study is the investigation of the effects of a strongly expressed restriction-oriented climate change mitigation heuristic (SER heuristic) on people's attitudes towards and acceptance of climate change mitigation technologies such as Carbon Capture and Utilization (CCU). Furthermore, we want to examine the effects of a scenario-based communication intervention approach on the promotion of a supportive attitude towards and acceptance of CCU, especially referring to people characterized by a SER heuristic. Against this background, we present empirical findings based on an online experiment including a scenario-based intervention in an initial sample of 401 German participants. In line with our expectations, our findings show that participants characterized by a SER heuristic report a significantly lower supportive attitude towards CCU as well as a lower acceptance of CCU, compared to participants who are not characterized by a SER heuristic. Furthermore, our findings imply the examined scenario-based communication intervention approach to be an effective tool for the promotion of participants’ supportive attitudes towards CCU and acceptance of CCU. Taken together, the present study provides further valuable insights for the promotion of people’s supportive attitude towards as well as of their acceptance of necessary new climate change mitigation technologies such as CCU. |
| Date: | 2024–07–11 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:osfxxx:dqt4u |
| By: | Davide Bosco (Department of Economics, Management and Statistics, University of Milano-Bicocca and Center for European Studies – CefES); Mario Gilli (Department of Economics, Management and Statistics, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milano and Center for European Studies – CefES) |
| Abstract: | We study effort provision and incentivisation in a Tullock group-contest with m = 2 groups that differ in size. A novel algorithmic procedure is presented that, under a symmetry assumption, explicitly characterises the equilibrium. Endogenous, optimal incentivisation schemes are then determined. Four results ensue. First, strategic interactions endogenously come in mean-field form: individual effort provision responds to the aggregate effort and average egalitarianism across groups. Therefore, the game is aggregative. Second, individuals endlessly cycle between zero and positive effort provision at some incentivisation schemes: no pure-strategy equilibria exist in these cases. Third, group size determines whether the egalitarianism of endogenous schemes increases or decreases in the average egalitarianism across groups. Fourth, all groups provide effort at the endogenous schemes if incentivisation is properly restricted. |
| Keywords: | Collective-action problem, Conflict, Selective incentives, Strategic complements and substitutes |
| JEL: | C72 D71 D74 |
| Date: | 2024–06 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fem:femwpa:2024.11 |
| By: | Denis Charles; Magali Dumontet; Meglena Jeleva; Johanna Etner |
| Abstract: | Term life insurance contracts differ from one another: private information level asked to applicants, options presence in the contract, or claim payment type. Understanding how individuals’ demand is influenced by these possibilities is not straightforward. We explore socioeconomic and behavioral characteristics that might influence term life insurance demand through a Discrete Choice Experiment (DCE). On a sample representative of the French population, we estimate individuals’ characteristics that influence (1) term life insurance purchasing decision and (2) Willingness to Pay for each feature of the contract without testing new features directly in the market. In addition to socioeconomic characteristics, behavioral factors permit to better understand overall demand for term life insurance product as well as characteristics of such contract. Future concerns, optimism about survival, perceived asset management risk, and altruism influence term life insurance purchasing behavior. |
| Keywords: | Term Life Insurance, Discrete Choice Experiment, Willingness to Pay, Individual Preferences |
| JEL: | C83 D12 G22 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:drm:wpaper:2024-23 |
| By: | Davide Bosco; Mario Gilli |
| Abstract: | We study effort provision and incentivisation in a Tullock group-contest with m ≥ 2 groups that differ in size. A novel algorithmic procedure is presented that, under a symmetry assumption, explicitly characterises the equilibrium. Endogenous, optimal incentivisation schemes are then determined. Four results ensue. First, strategic interactions endogenously come in mean-field form: individual effort provision responds to the aggregate effort and average egalitarianism across groups. Therefore, the game is aggregative. Second, individuals endlessly cycle between zero and positive effort provision at some incentivisation schemes: no pure-strategy equilibria exist in these cases. Third, group size determines whether the egalitarianism of endogenous schemes increases or decreases in the average egalitarianism across groups. Fourth, all groups provide effort at the endogenous schemes if incentivisation is properly restricted. |
| Keywords: | Collective-action problem, Conflict, Selective incentives, Strategic complements and substitutes. |
| JEL: | D74 D71 C72 |
| Date: | 2024–06 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mib:wpaper:540 |
| By: | Mehler, Maren F.; Ellenrieder, Sara; Buxmann, Peter |
| Abstract: | While the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) aims to automate human tasks, psychology research shows how crucial human effort is for the appreciation of the final results. The so-called “IKEA effect” refers to the increased valuation individuals attribute to self-created products. However, the potential implications of this effect for GenAI have remained unexplored. This study delves into the presence of the IKEA effect in GenAI, specifically focusing on image creation. Through an online experiment involving 174 participants in Germany, we observed that participants valued images higher if more human effort was invested during collaborative co-creation with GenAI. Our findings indicate a significant presence of the IKEA effect, although existing GenAI research primarily focuses on the automation of processes. This discovery emphasizes the importance of understanding user psychology and also offers valuable insights for designing and leveraging GenAI applications. |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dar:wpaper:146773 |
| By: | Hoffmann, Vivian; Murphy, Mike; Harigaya, Tomoko |
| Abstract: | This report describes the methods and findings of a randomized controlled trial evaluating the impact of coffee agronomy training and phone-based advisory services on farmer practices and observed coffee yield. In-person training was provided in randomly selected villages over the course of two years by Hanns R. Neuman Stiftung (HRNS) and TechnoServe in two separate regions of Western Uganda encompassing six districts. Messages reinforcing this training were sent to a subset of farmers in villages where training was offered by Precision Development (PxD), and standalone messages were sent to a subset of farmers in villages where no training was offered. The program period spanned the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns, which significantly affected how training could be delivered and likely reduced its impact. |
| Keywords: | agronomy; coffee; crop yield; impact assessment; costs; frica; Eastern Africa; Sub-Saharan Africa; Uganda |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fpr:resrep:149080 |