I present a stylized, analytical model of cue-induced attention- and task-switching — with a proposed neurobiological interpretation of the model’s features — to organize available empirical evidence on two widely-studied neurodevelopmental conditions: attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Specifically, I use this framework to show how a systematic tendency

We compare in a laboratory experiment two audit-based tax compliance mechanisms that collect fines from those found non-compliant. The mechanisms differ in the way fines are redistributed to individuals who were either not audited or audited and found to be compliant. The first, as is the case in most extant tax systems, does not discriminate between the un-audited and those found compliant. The second

Altruism among humans is common. It is especially prominent among in-group members. However, we are struck by results from laboratory-in-the-field experiments with out-group members of different ethnic or religious backgrounds. In all instances, the groups were rivals in civil wars. While we find almost no altruistic behavior among groups that were engaged in fighting, out-group altruism emerges with

Studies on the intuitive or deliberate nature of human actions often use time constraints for identification, assuming that constrained individuals fall back to intuitive behavior. This identification strategy disregards individual heterogeneity and self-priming, i.e. the behavioral rule that subjects can form during the instructions phase, and then apply irrespective of the time constraint. We use

We experimentally investigate the effect of a negative endowment shock that can cause inequality in a trust game. Our goal is to assess whether different causes of inequality have different effects on trust and trustworthiness. In our trust game, we vary whether there is inequality (in favor of the second mover) or not and whether the inequality results from a random negative shock (i.e., the outcome

We conduct an experiment on gender differences in bargaining with asymmetric information. Based on Abreu and Gul (2000), we introduce asymmetric information about commitments by inducing irrational types, who never back down from a fixed bargaining position. Bargaining behavior depends on whether gender is revealed or not. When gender is unknown, men are more likely to mimic irrational types than women

People tend to acquire more information while making their decisions than a rational and risk-neutral benchmark would predict. We conduct a carefully designed experiment to derive five plausible reasons for pre-decision information overpurchasing. The results show that overpurchasing of information can be almost entirely explained by systematic information processing errors (misestimation or incorrect

Preference reversals between choice and valuation are typically studied with probabilities or with time delays. I extend them to social distances and document their existence in this new domain.

Outcome editing refers to a set of mental rules that people apply when deciding whether to evaluate multiple outcomes jointly or separately, which subsequently affects choice. In a large-scale online survey (n = 2062) we investigate whether individuals use the same outcome editing rules for financial outcomes (e.g., a lottery win) and social outcomes (e.g., a party with friends). We also test the role

Using experimental data on choices between pairs of lotteries, we compare a new parameterized Quantum Decision Theory (QDT) with Rank Dependent Utility Theory (RDU) and Cumulative Prospect Theory (CPT). At the aggregate level, CPT-based QDT outperforms. At the individual level, the considerable heterogeneity across subjects is best described by the RDU-based QDT, at odds with the conclusion using the

This study examines how past performance moderates the effect of the size of the prize on tournament self-selection. We identify two types of trajectories that play simultaneous and unique roles in moderating the influence of prize on an agent’s decision to enter a tournament: within-period trajectory, which reflects an agent’s short-term performance streak in the tournaments recently entered, and

Using data from a longitudinal survey representative of the Dutch population, we analyze the relationship between saving and locus of control, and we study the underlying mechanisms. Locus of control measures the extent to which individuals perceive their life outcomes to be determined by their own actions, as opposed to external factors. Those who believe to be in control of future outcomes turn out

Evidence from psychology and marketing suggests that those who make a “precise” first offer in bargaining get a better deal than those who make a “round” first offer. We report on a series of experiments designed to test for and improve our understanding of the “precise first offer” (PFO) effect in bargaining and whether it likely reflects rational optimizing or equilibrium behavior. Our experiment

This research examines the neurophysiological correlates of consumers’ price memory processes. We focus on the explicit and implicit dimensions of consumers’ price knowledge and use an experimental functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) study to assess how the encoding of task-dependent price memory affects the choice process and neural activation. The findings of our study add to the field of

Driven by methodological concerns, theoretical considerations, and previous evidence, I systematically test the validity of common dictator game variants with probabilistic payoffs. Using a unified experimental framework, I include four approaches and compare them to a standard dictator game: involving fewer receivers than dictators, paying only some players, paying only some decisions, and role uncertainty

Experimental participants are more likely to follow an arbitrary rule the more others in their reference group do so as well. The effect is most pronounced for individuals who follow few rules when not knowing others’ behavior. Unlike what is observed for conditional cooperation, learning that only few others follow a rule does not reduce rule following.

The intention behind imposing quotas for women on corporate boards is to close the gender gap in economic participation and help women to be promoted within organizations. However, the broader social psychological literature lends support to ideas that affirmative action policies, such as quotas, may do more harm than good for the beneficiaries. We extend this idea beyond the affected beneficiaries

We experimentally test whether the gap between reference and actual income impacts subsequent altruism. Participants first perform a real-effort task for a fixed wage and then play a dictator game. Between conditions, we vary the level and the timing of the revelation of the wage. In some conditions, participants know the wage before the real effort task and are not informed of the other potential

This paper studies philanthropic behaviour in terms of money and time contributions for charitable organisations. Using a unique dataset, which is representative of the German population, we examine the pure contributions of individuals who give either money or time as well as joint contributions of individuals who give both money and time. We find that the sequential decisions to give to charity and

We use a public good experiment to study how in-group cooperation is affected by payoff-irrelevant information about cooperation in other groups (i.e., descriptive out-group feedback). We find that positive out-group feedback, indicating above-average cooperation, deters low in-group contributors from increasing their contribution towards the in-group average. By contrast, negative out-group feedback

In this article we analyze the impact of automatic bill payment (ABP) on household debt. We present a theoretical intertemporal consumption model that shows an inattention effect when individuals subscribe an ABP for their debts. This effect causes a higher level of indebtedness (beyond optimal) and, therefore, well-being loss. Furthermore, we empirically test this theory for Chile, an emerging economy

We report two studies investigating the role of self-control in risky financial decision-making, operationalized as incentivized lottery task decisions. Study 1 (N = 529) investigated the link between propensity to take financial risks and trait self-control. Study 2 (N = 321) examined whether reflecting on one’s prior successes and failures in exercising self-control has an impact on subsequent risky

This paper analyzes experimental data to better understand self-punishment and compensation as potential means for making amends for having caused distributional harm and inefficiency. Our design allows for and disentangles intended harm and unintended harm. In our data, subjects infrequently self-punish, whereas they frequently offer compensation. Appeasement tactics are used particularly when the

We consider a market where “standard” risk-neutral agents coexist with “goal-oriented” agents who, in addition to the expected income, seek a high-enough monetary payoff (the “trigger”) to fulfill a goal. We analyze a two-sided one-to-one matching model where the matching between principals and agents and incentive contracts are endogenous. In any equilibrium contract, goal-oriented agents are matched

Around the developed world, the need for graduates from Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields is growing. Research on educational and occupational choice has traditionally focused on the cognitive skills of prospective students, and on how these determine the expected costs and benefits of study programs. Little work exists that analyzes the role of personality traits on study

A sizable proportion of individuals act reciprocally. They punish and reward depending on the (un)kindness of those with whom they interact. In this paper, I explore whether individuals still reciprocate intentions when others lack full control over the consequences of their actions. By means of a dictator game with punishment opportunities, I show that unkind intentions are enough to trigger punishments

Gambling and investment are two domains that involve financial decisions. The present research investigates people’s lay theories about gambling and investment, and how these lay theories affect loss aversion in these domains. Lay people’s understanding of gambling and investment is often largely based on information that is immediately available to them. Moreover, information about losing money by

This paper tests the conjecture that involuntary job loss erodes trust. Using the German Socio-Economic Panel and considering how trust evolves over a quinquennial time interval, we find that job loss decreases trust by about 9 percent of a standard deviation.

Beliefs about others’ cooperativeness are among the strongest determinants of cooperative behaviours. Beliefs about different others, however, are not necessarily uniform, nor necessarily related to past behaviours: Different expectations about different others might solely originate from differences in observed individual characteristics. Finally, not all such beliefs need drive conditional behaviour

We use data from the well-being module of the American Time-Use Survey (ATUS) 2010–2013 to reexamine the relationship between unemployment and emotional well-being. We replicate two previous studies (Krueger & Mueller, 2012; Dolan, Kudrna, & Stone, 2017) which have produced differing findings on this relationship, and analyze what factors cause the differences in their outcomes. We find that the results

A recent literature emphasizes that gender differences in the labor market may in part be driven by a gender gap in willingness to compete. However, whereas experiments in this literature typically investigate willingness to compete in private environments, real world competitions often have a more public nature, which introduces potential social image concerns. If such image concerns are important

We compared the effectiveness of basket goal-setting to product information strategies on sustainable consumption in a simulated online supermarket. Experiment 1 found a significant effect of basket goal setting techniques with carbon basket feedback in either numerical or graphical form on the carbon content of baskets purchased but no effect of numerical product information alone or in combination

This study investigates how individuals assess imprecise information. We focus on two essential dimensions of decision under uncertainty, outcomes and probabilities, and their respective precision. We believe the precision of information is highly relevant in the investment setting, as reflected in the well-known “home (familiarity) bias”, and the outcome and probability dimensions, separately or jointly

As a consequence of digital transformation, individuals are often confronted with prefilled forms or prefilled data entry masks. In situations where cheating and lying are of concern, prefilling might reduce dishonest behavior. In a controlled experiment, we investigate how correctly and incorrectly prefilled forms influence compliance behavior. We frame our experiment as filing the annual income tax

Shafir et al. (1997) described money illusion as people’s inclination to think of money without taking inflation sufficiently into account, i.e., in nominal terms rather than in real terms. We successfully replicated Problems 1 to 4 of Shafir, Diamond, and Tversky’s study (1997) on money illusion (MTurk; N = 604). We found effect sizes in line with the original ones for assessments of income (Problem

Does uncertainty about an outcome influence decisions? The sure-thing principle (Savage, 1954) posits that it should not, but Tversky and Shafir (1992) found that people regularly violate it in hypothetical gambling and vacation decisions, a phenomenon they termed “disjunction effect”. Very close replications and extensions of Tversky and Shafir (1992) were conducted in this paper (N = 890, MTurk)

Advice processes are omnipresent in our professional and private lives. We use a laboratory experiment to study how gender and gender matching affect advice giving and how gender matching affects advice following about entry into a real-effort tournament. For advice giving we find that women are less likely than men to recommend tournament entry to advisees than are intermediate performers. Furthermore

We examine a superstition for which adherence is nearly universal among its target population. Using a combination of field interventions that involve unsuspecting participants and a lab-style value elicitation, we investigate the nature and strength of peoples’ underlying preferences. While a substantial minority of people are willing to incur a relatively high individual cost in order to adhere to

Social pressure may have relevant consequences in many contexts but it is hard to evaluate it empirically. In this paper we exploit a natural experiment in soccer to provide clear evidence of its effects. We aim to study how social pressure from the crowd in a stadium affects both players and referees. While in normal matches crowd support may be correlated to a host of variables affecting the outcome

We introduce simple guilt into a generic prisoner’s dilemma (PD) game and solve for the equilibria of the resulting psychological game. It is shown that for all guilt parameters, it is a pure strategy equilibrium that both players defect. But if the guilt parameter surpasses a threshold, a mixed strategy equilibrium and a pure strategy equilibrium in which both players cooperate emerge. We implement

Birth order supposedly influences individuals’ cooperative attitudes: firstborns are more family-oriented and favor their kin, while laterborns are more likely to turn to non-kin. However little direct experimental evidence exists concerning costly resource sharing between full siblings. The present study investigates sharing decisions with respect to a monetary resource by full sisters when either:

This paper investigates the effects of framing in intertemporal choice by elementary school children. Sutter, Yilmaz, and Oberauer (2015) recently demonstrated that intertemporal choice in children is malleable with respect to simple defaults. Using a similar approach, we replicated their study. We also found that children are more willing to select the immediate option in (standard) control frames

While previous studies on post-decisional regret have exclusively focused on externally provided options, the present study is the first to examine post-decisional regret in situations with self-generated options. Applying a metacognitive perspective, we predicted that a large option set-size leads to less post-decisional regret than a small option set-size. This hypothesis is in contrast to the classic

For blood transfusion centres, studying anticipated emotions (AEs) related to blood donation is essential, since these variables influence donation decision. For this reason, this work addresses the need to identify the antecedents and consequences of AEs, which will help explain their origin and their role in donation behaviour. Our purpose is to make further progress with the application of the AE

The implications of the method of payment to financial advisors on the behavior of individuals are of interest to economists and regulators around the globe. This paper uses an experimental approach to compare two common alternative forms of payment. The first is “out-of-pocket” (an upfront payment from a checking account), and the second is “out-of-investment” (a deferred payment from an investment

Researchers increasingly elicit beliefs to understand the underlying motivations of decision makers. Two commonly used methods are the quadratic scoring rule (QSR) and the binarized scoring rule (BSR). Hossain and Okui (2013) use a within-subject design to evaluate the performance of these two methods in an environment where subjects report probabilistic beliefs over binary outcomes with objective

Most people pay their taxes most of the time, even if the expected disutility from enforcement is too low to deter tax evasion. One potential reason is tax morale and, more specifically, rule following. In a lab experiment, we show that the willingness to pay taxes just because participants are told they are supposed to pay is indeed pronounced. Yet compliance is reduced if participants learn that

It has been shown that both perseverance as well as peer effects affect performance. In our experiment, we investigate the interplay between these two factors. Participants work on a wordplay task where we quantify perseverance as the decision to continue working hard in the face of challenges. We find that persevering on the task is significantly correlated with the psychological questionnaire measure

A confidence-based climate between public administrations and citizens is essential. This paper argues and provides empirical evidence that depending on the perceived interaction history, different policies are needed to build versus maintain confidence. Applying the extended Slippery Slope Framework of tax compliance, an online and a laboratory experiment were conducted to explore whether tax authorities’

We propose a theoretical perspective on framing effects where decision makers violate the axiom of description invariance. We first propose a framework that makes this axiom explicit and then we weaken it to allow for description dependence. This framework provides a structure to disentangle different violations of description invariance. We then identify a particular class of violations that we call

Financial management differs across households with consequences for financial outcomes and well-being of partners in households. A large-sample study has been performed, investigating the relationship between financial management of households and the occurrence of financial problems. To our knowledge, this is the first study on this relationship. Data from both partners was collected on having joint

High quality contact and customer relationships are key services for all types of firms. To achieve this high quality performance standard, companies need highly motivated and committed employees, and human resources managers are responsible for designing and implementing practices capable of satisfying both economic exchanges and social exchanges in employee-organization relationships. The aim of

We analyse betting behaviour patterns of the visitors of the specialized betting website dedicated to the popular eSports game Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. The reverse favourite-longshot bias is found, which is rather unusual for parimutuel betting markets, where favourite-longshot bias is more common. We define simple betting strategies based on the bets on underdogs and show that these strategies

We examine whether inflated perceptions of financial literacy affect financial decision making. Gaps between objective financial literacy and self-reported (perceived) financial literacy (blind spots) predict 19 financial behaviors better than age, gender, income, ethnicity, marital status, self-employment status, and general education levels. Only two predictors, perceived financial literacy and financial

This paper adds to the “costs of recessions” literature by examining whether the Great Recession caused an increase in body mass index (BMI) among economically insecure working age adults. Using a difference-in-differences (DiD) design and two panels of the Canadian National Population Health Survey, we compare the pre-recession era (2004–2005) with the Great Recession (2008–2009). In addition to stratifying

Can self-set normative goals restrain free-riding in a social dilemma? In a first experimental study, we test the effect of two different types of self-set normative goals on people’s willingness to cooperate in a public good game. Focusing on the level of contributions that one can at least be expected to make proves effective at restraining the material incentive to free-ride. Yet in two later studies

This study examined the differences in risk behavior between men and women using a household survey that captured the risk preferences of two members in a household and recorded wealth at the individual level instead of the usual approach of representing wealth at the household level. After controlling for commonly used explanatory variables, such as gender, education, age, and wealth, household fixed

We examine whether changes in perceived norm of dishonesty can offset the effects of changes in benefit from the dishonest action. We find partial support for the hypothesis in laboratory experiments on lying behavior in a cheap-talk sender-receiver game, conducted in two countries. In the experiments, we vary benefit from lying and shift senders’ norm perception by providing them information on lying

In recent years, correlational evidence has accumulated in support of a positive relationship between positive affect and pro-environmental behavior. In contrast, it remains unclear whether the induction of positive affect can causally promote pro-environmental behavior. Previous attempts to examine the effects of experimental affect induction were constrained by the difficulty to study pro-environmental

This paper aims to analyze the impact of different intra-household arrangements, defined in terms of income pooling and decision-making responsibilities, on individual subjective well-being in a number of European countries. Using the EU-SILC 2010 module on intra-household sharing of resources and self-assessed health, as a dimension of subjective well-being, we find that the relationship between self-reported