Christian Th�ni
Peer effects and social preferences in voluntary cooperation: a theoretical and experimental analysis
Th�ni, Christian; Gaechter, Simon
Authors
SIMON GAECHTER simon.gaechter@nottingham.ac.uk
Professor, Psychology of Economic Decision Making
Abstract
Social preferences and social influence effects ("peer effects") are well documented, but little is known about how peers shape social preferences. Settings where social preferences matter are often situations where peer effects are likely too. In a gift-exchange experiment with independent payoffs between two agents we find causal evidence for peer effects. Efforts are positively correlated but with a kink: agents follow a low-performing but not a high-performing peer. This contradicts major theories of social preferences which predict that efforts are unrelated, or negatively related. Some theories allow for positively-related efforts but cannot explain most observations. Conformism, norm following and social esteem are candidate explanations.
Citation
Thöni, C., & Gaechter, S. (2015). Peer effects and social preferences in voluntary cooperation: a theoretical and experimental analysis. Journal of Economic Psychology, 48, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joep.2015.03.001
Journal Article Type | Article |
---|---|
Publication Date | Jun 1, 2015 |
Deposit Date | May 11, 2015 |
Publicly Available Date | Mar 29, 2024 |
Journal | Journal of Economic Psychology |
Print ISSN | 0167-4870 |
Electronic ISSN | 0167-4870 |
Publisher | Elsevier |
Peer Reviewed | Peer Reviewed |
Volume | 48 |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joep.2015.03.001 |
Public URL | https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/983571 |
Publisher URL | http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.joep.2015.03.001 |
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Copyright Statement
Copyright information regarding this work can be found at the following address: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
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