Publications

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Authors: Cappelletti, Dominique; Levati, M. Vittoria; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: The underrepresentation of females in STEM fields hinders productivity and perpetuates labor market inequalities. In countries where children are tracked into educational trajectories from high school (as in Italy, 8th grade), it is crucial to understand what drives gendered pathways before educational segregation starts. Collecting experimental and survey data from Italian 8th graders, we find that perceived advantageous comparisons with peers in math ability and counter-stereotypical beliefs increase the likelihood that girls enroll in a math-intensive track during high school. Policy initiatives improving girls’ expectations about their relative math performance may thus encourage female students to pursue STEM tracks.

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Investigating the analytical robustness of the social and behavioural sciences

Aczel, Balazs et al.

Nature | Vol. 652 | No. 8108 | pp. 135–142

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Authors: Aczel, Balazs; Szaszi, Barnabas; Clelland, Harry T.; Kovacs, Marton; Holzmeister, Felix; van Ravenzwaaij, Don; Schulz-Kümpel, Hannah; Hoffmann, Sabine; Nilsonne, Gustav; Kosa, Livia; Torma, Zoltan A.; Abdelfatah, Yousuf; Aberson, Christopher L.; Acar, Oguz A.; Acem, Ensar; Adamkovic, Matus; Adamovich, Timofey; Adiasto, Krisna; Ahnström, Love; Akil, Atakan M.; Al-Busaidi, Adil S.; Al-Hoorie, Ali H.; Albers, Casper J.; Allen, Peter J.; Alsalti, Taym; Altman, Micah; Alzahawi, Shilaan; Ambrosini, Ettore; Anafinova, Saule; Anand, Rahul; Angerer, Martin; Angulo-Brunet, Ariadna; Antonietti, Alberto; Arato, Jozsef; Arenas, Andreu; Aviña, Marco M.; Azevedo, Flavio; Bachl, Marko; Bago, Bence; Bahník, Štěpán; Baker, Bradley J.; Balayan, Elza; Baldwin, Cassandra L.; Banai, Benjamin; Banas, Kasia; Bartoš, František; Baskin, Ernest; Bastiaansen, Jojanneke A.; Bault, Nadège; Bauman, Christopher W.; Beazer, Quintin H.; Behnke, Maciej; Bendixen, Theiss; Berger, Sebastian; Bernard, Anna; Bernardic, Ursa; Bloom, Paul A.; Boldt, Annika; Bosch-Rosa, Ciril; Botvinik-Nezer, Rotem; Bouyamourn, Adam; Bozkurt, Ozge; Brehm, Laurel; Breuer, Johannes; Briggs, Ryan; Brohmer, Hilmar; Buchanan, Erin; Buckenmaier, Johannes; Buckley, Jeffrey; Buczny, Jacek; Burghart, Matthias; Butt, Bilal H.; Byrd, Nick; Cafarelli, Valentina; Callahan, Patrick; Capitán, Tabaré; Carriere, Kevin; Cataldo, Andrea M.; Cepaluni, Gabriel; Chan, Eugene; Chandler, Jesse J.; Chang, Chia-chen; Chen, Xi; Chen, Shirley Shuo; Chen, Fadong; Chen, Hao; Chirkov, Valerii; Cialfi, Daniela; Clarke, Beth; Coelho, Sophie G.; Cohen, Clara; Collins, Jason; Cook, Susan W.; Corlazzoli, Gaia; Cummins, Jamie; Czymara, Christian; D’hondt, Jonathan; Rosa, Anna Dalla; Davis, Abi M. B.; Davis, Charles P.; Day, Martin V.; De Keyzer, Freya; de Leeuw, Joshua R.; de Vries, Tjeerd Rudmer; Debnath, Ramit; Dechterenko, Filip; Demiral, Elif E.; Desgroseilliers, Marc; Dianovics, Dominik; Diveica, Veronica; Dochow-Sondershaus, Stephan; Dohle, Simone; Dong, LiChen; Dora, Jonas; Dorrough, Angela R.; Dreber, Anna; Du, Hongfei; Edlund, John E.; Eerland, Anita; Efendić, Emir; Elder, Jacob; Elsherif, Mahmoud M.; Ernst, Mareike; Estrada, Eduardo; Eudave, Luis; Evans, Thomas R.; Farrera, Arodi; Ferrouhi, El Mehdi; Fiala, Lenka; Fialho, Fabrício M.; Fiechter, Joshua L.; Fišar, Miloš; Flores-Kanter, Pablo Ezequiel; Folwarczny, Michał; Fossum, Jessica L.; Franco, Vithor R.; Freichel, René; Freire, Danilo; Frese, Joris; Furnas, Alexander C.; Gaebler, Johann D.; Gajary, Lisa C.; Galang, Carl Michael; Ganschow, Benjamin; Garrison, S. Mason; Gasiorowska, Agata; Ponne, Bruno Gasparotto; Gauriot, Romain; Geminiani, Alice; Geraldes, Diogo; Gernsbacher, Morton Ann; Giani, Cinzia; Glerean, Enrico; Gligorić, Vukašin; Gnambs, Timo; Godefroidt, Amélie; González-Bustamante, Bastián; Goreis, Andreas; Graf-Vlachy, Lorenz; Grieder, Manuel; Grigoryev, Dmitry; Grinschgl, Sandra; Grüning, David J.; Guassi Moreira, João F.; Guichet, Clément; Gurgand, Lilas; Habibnia, Hooman; Hafenbrack, Andrew C.; Hafenbrädl, Sebastian; Häffner, Carolin; Hagemeister, Felix; Haigh, Matthew; Hajdu, Nandor; Hajimoladarvish, Narges; Hall, Jonathan D.; Hamjediers, Maik; Hardwick, Robert M.; Harma, Mehmet; Harp, Nicholas R.; Hartvig, Áron D.; Heiberger, Raphael H.; Heim, Arthur; Hernæs, Øystein; Hernaus, Dennis; Heyman, Tom; Hicks, Joshua; Hogeveen, Jeremy; Höpler, Julia; Houlihan, Sean Dae; Huber, Christoph; Hughes, Conor; Hummler, Teresa; Huth, Karoline; Ingendahl, Moritz; Ishii, Tatsunori; Isler, Ozan; Izydorczak, Kamil; Jackson, Iain R.; Jahn, Andrew; Jain, Maitri; Jakubow, Alexander; Jang, Daisung; Jang, JunHyeok; Jekel, Marc; Jia, Fanli; Jiménez-Leal, William; Johnson, Rebecca; Jones, Alex; Jungkunz, Sebastian; Kačmár, Pavol; Kaiser, Caspar; Kalaycı, Yağmur; Kantorowicz, Jaroslaw; Karabulut, Anıl; Karch, Julian D.; Karimi-Rouzbahani, Hamid; Karl, Johannes A.; Kažemekaitytė, Austėja; Kazlou, Aliaksandr; Kekecs, Zoltan; Kim, Jin; Kirchler, Michael H.; Kiss-Dobronyi, Bence; Klasmeier, Kai N.; Klein, Jack W.; Koba, Cemal; Kołczyńska, Marta; Kolias, Pavlos; Kolouch Grabovský, Matěj; Korbmacher, Max; Korda, Živa; Kowal, Marta; Kretzschmar, André; Krivoshchekov, Vladislav; Krypotos, Angelos-Miltiadis; Kubsch, Marcus; Kunisato, Yoshihiko; Lacko, David; Landwehr, Jan R.; Lange, Martin; Lee, Hongmi; Lee, Daniel; Lee, Sangil; Lemay, Edward P.; Lempert, Daniel; Leo, Andrea; Lesage, Elise; Levin, Joel M.; Li, Peng; Lin, Jing; Lindsay, Luke; Lisovoj, Daria; Liu, Meng; Liu, Sihong; Liu, Tingshu; Iacono, Sergio Lo; Lodder, Paul; López-Bueno, Rubén; Lopez-Nicolas, Ruben; Loter, Katharina; Lou, Nigel Mantou; Lovakov, Andrey; Lu, Jackson G.; Ludwig, Jonas; Luebber, Finn; Lukavský, Jiří; Luo, Charles Q.; Lyu, Xuanyu; Maassen, Esther; Máčel, Martin; Mack, Michael L.; Madan, Christopher R.; Mädebach, Andreas; Maffly-Kipp, Joseph; Mallinson, Daniel J.; Marchetti, Igor; Marghetis, Tyler; Marini, Matteo M.; Fages, Diego Marino; Martínez, Mayte; Martinoli, Mario; Masiliunas, Aidas; Massoni, Sébastien; Mathieu, Kaleb C.; Mayer, Stefan; Mayer, Duncan J.; Mayer, Maren; McCormick, Ethan M.; McDonough, Ian M.; McGowan, Amanda L.; McIntyre, Miranda M.; McKee, Paul; Meier, Armando N.; Meier, Pascal F.; Melero, Helena; Merkle, Christoph; Merz, Raphael; Michaelides, Michalis P.; Michaelsen, Patrik; Mikolajczak, Gosia

Abstract: The same dataset can be analysed in different justifiable ways to answer the same research question, potentially challenging the robustness of empirical science1–3. In this crowd initiative, we investigated the degree to which research findings in the social and behavioural sciences are contingent on analysts’ choices. We examined a stratified random sample of 100 studies published between 2009 and 2018, in which, for one claim per study, at least five reanalysts independently reanalysed the original data. The statistical appropriateness of the reanalyses was assessed in peer evaluations, and the robustness indicators were inspected along a range of research characteristics and study designs. We found that 34% of the independent reanalyses yielded the same result (within a tolerance region of ±0.05 Cohen’s d) as the original report; with a four times broader tolerance region, this indicator increased to 57%. Of the reanalyses conducted, 74% reached the same conclusion as the original investigation, 24% yielded no effects or inconclusive results and 2% reported the opposite effect. This exploratory study indicates that the common single-path analyses in social and behavioural research should not be simply assumed to be robust to alternative analyses4. Therefore, we recommend the development and use of practices to explore and communicate this neglected source of uncertainty.

Journal article

Lie for me: an experiment about delegation, efficiency and morality

Ploner, Matteo

Review of Behavioral Economics | pp. 1-20

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Authors: Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: In both individual and organizational contexts, delegation can be used to overcome moral constraints. In our experimental setup, Principals can either report a value in a die-under-the-cup task or delegate the reporting task to an Agent with no personal stake in the outcome. We manipulate the relative efficiency of the report, with the Agent’s prospects either surpassing or falling short of the Principal’s prospect. The findings reveal that while Agents generally behave honestly, those with higher levels of prosocial attitudes are likelier to lie when assigned an inefficient lottery, presumably to avoid disappointing the Principal. Furthermore, Principals tend to misreport opportunistically and delegate only when the Agent’s prospects are more favorable.

Working paper

Early Educational Inequalities: Socio-Emotional and Cognitive Skill Gaps among Italian Primary School Children

Piazzalunga, Daniela et al.

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Authors: Piazzalunga, Daniela; Alonso, Águeda Solís; Agostini, Sara; Berloffa, Gabriella; Biroli, Pietro; Tommaso, Maria Laura Di; Franchin, Laura; Mendolia, Silvia; Ploner, Matteo; Savadori, Lucia

Abstract: This paper investigates inequalities in cognitive and socio-emotional skills among Italian primary school children, with a focus on gender and migration background. Using original data from over 2,500 pupils in grades 3–5 across three regions, we measure mathematics performance, academic self-concept, growth mindset, prosocial behavior, socioemotional skills, and gender norms. We document systematic gender gaps: girls outperform boys in socio-emotional and non-cognitive domains, while boys achieve higher scores in mathematics and math self-concept. Children with a migratory background perform worse in both cognitive and most non-cognitive outcomes. We further examine the role of one’s own and teachers’ gender-related attitudes and instructional practices. Children’s stronger adherence to gender stereotypes is associated with worse non-cognitive skills, notably socio-emotional skills, growth mindset, academic self-concept, and mathematics performance, with more pronounced associations for boys. At the teachers’ level, gender stereotypes are associated with lower self-efficacy and academic self-concept, particularly among girls, whereas more inclusive teaching practices are linked to higher mathematics achievement and improved socio-emotional outcomes. These associations are not explained by observable teacher characteristics. Overall, the findings highlight the importance of gender norms and teacher beliefs in shaping early educational inequalities and inform policies aimed at reducing skill gaps in primary education.

Working paper

Gender Differences in Pension Investment: The Role of Biased Advice

Curi, Claudia et al.

Faculty of Economics and Management at the Free University of Bozen | No. BEMPS118

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Authors: Curi, Claudia; Dibiasi, Andreas; Ploner, Matteo; Tonin, Mirco

Abstract: We study whether gender-biased financial advice contributes to the gender gap in pension wealth. Using administrative records from four private pension funds in Italy, we document that women are ceteris paribus 8 percentage points less likely than men to choose stock-focused investment lines at the time of enrollment. To assess whether advisory behavior contributes to this gap, we conduct a vignette-based survey experiment among pension advisors affiliated to the four funds, randomly varying the gender of otherwise identical prospective 25-year-old clients. Advisors are 22 percentage points less likely to recommend stock-oriented portfolios to female clients, even after conditioning on advisors’ beliefs about relevant client characteristics. We further show that a simple information intervention that makes advisors aware of the documented gender bias eliminates this gap in the experimental setting. Linking advisors to real clients in the administrative data, we demonstrate that the gender gap in actual investment choices shrinks by approximately 60% during the five months following the intervention. This evidence suggests that gender bias in financial advice is largely implicit and that low-cost informational feedback to advisors can meaningfully reduce gender disparities in retirement wealth accumulation.

Working paper

Identity and Cooperation in Multicultural Societies

Rattini, Veronica; Montinari, Natalia; Ploner, Matteo

IZA Discussion Papers

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Authors: Rattini, Veronica; Montinari, Natalia; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: This paper studies whether integration-policy framings affect cooperation in diverse groups. We conduct a lab-in-the-field experiment with 390 adolescents in mixed classrooms in Italy. Within each class, students were randomly assigned to groups receiving either a common-identity framing emphasizing shared school belonging, a multicultural framing highlighting family origins and cultural diversity, or a neutral framing, and then played a public goods game with and without punishment. At baseline, immigrants contributed about 17 percent more than natives. Framing diversity through a multicultural lens increased natives’ contributions by about 13 percent, nearly eliminating the initial cooperation gap, whereas the common-identity framing had no detectable effect. When punishment was introduced, the multicultural framing increased the sanctioning of free riders, particularly among natives. The results suggest that cooperation in diverse settings depends not only on minority integration but also on how majority-group members respond to diversity. Policies that recognize multicultural identities, rather than emphasizing shared belonging alone, can strengthen cooperative norms in heterogeneous environments.

2025 2 items

2 journal articles

Journal article

Ain’t blaming you: Delegation of financial decisions to humans and algorithms

Ismagilova, Zilia; Ploner, Matteo

Computers in Human Behavior: Artificial Humans | Vol. 4 | pp. 100147

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Authors: Ismagilova, Zilia; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: This article investigates the tendency to prioritize outcomes when evaluating decision-making processes, particularly in situations where choices are assigned to either a human or an algorithm. In our experiment, a Principal delegates a risky financial decision to an Agent, who can choose to act independently or to use an algorithm. The Principal then rewards or penalizes the Agent based on investment performance, while we manipulate the Principal’s knowledge of the outcome during the evaluation. Our results confirm a significant outcome bias, indicating that the assessment of decision effectiveness remains heavily influenced by results, whether the decision is made by the Agent or delegated to an algorithm. Furthermore, the Agent’s reliance on the algorithm and the level of investment risk do not change depending on whether rewards or penalties are decided before or after the outcome is known.

Journal article

Salience and information avoidance in voluntary carbon offsetting decisions: Evidence from online experiments

Campigotto, Nicola; Gioia, Chiara; Ploner, Matteo

Ecological Economics | Vol. 233 | pp. 108577

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Authors: Campigotto, Nicola; Gioia, Chiara; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: This paper investigates the behavioural drivers of voluntary carbon offsets, which allow individuals to reduce their emissions by funding environmental and energy projects. Despite the growth of the voluntary carbon market, the factors influencing these decisions remain under-researched. This study uses two incentivized online experiments to examine the role of information salience and information avoidance as determinants of offsetting behaviour. The results indicate that: (i) when carbon emissions are more saliently linked to consumption activities, contributions to offset programmes increase; (ii) individuals with a lower pro-environmental orientation tend to avoid information about their emissions, leading to lower contributions; and (iii) deliberate avoidance or pursuit of information can either reduce or increase contributions, respectively, compared to scenarios where information is either unavailable or provided by default.

2024 3 items

3 journal articles

Journal article Crowdsourced

Reproducibility in management science

Fišar, Miloš et al.

Management Science | Vol. 70 | No. 3 | pp. 1343–1356

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Authors: Fišar, Miloš; Greiner, Ben; Huber, Christoph; Katok, Elena; Ozkes, Ali I; Management Science Reproducibility Collaboration

Abstract: With the help of more than 700 reviewers, we assess the reproducibility of nearly 500 articles published in the journal Management Science before and after the introduction of a new Data and Code Disclosure policy in 2019. When considering only articles for which data accessibility and hardware and software requirements were not an obstacle for reviewers, the results of more than 95% of articles under the new disclosure policy could be fully or largely computationally reproduced. However, for 29% of articles, at least part of the data set was not accessible to the reviewer. Considering all articles in our sample reduces the share of reproduced articles to 68%. These figures represent a significant increase compared with the period before the introduction of the disclosure policy, where only 12% of articles voluntarily provided replication materials, of which 55% could be (largely) reproduced. Substantial heterogeneity in reproducibility rates across different fields is mainly driven by differences in data set accessibility. Other reasons for unsuccessful reproduction attempts include missing code, unresolvable code errors, weak or missing documentation, and software and hardware requirements and code complexity. Our findings highlight the importance of journal code and data disclosure policies and suggest potential avenues for enhancing their effectiveness.

Journal article

Skewness-seeking behavior and financial investments

Benuzzi, Matteo; Ploner, Matteo

Annals of Finance

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Authors: Benuzzi, Matteo; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: Recent theoretical and empirical advancements highlight the pivotal role played by higher-order moments, such as skewness, in shaping financial decision-making. Nevertheless, contemporary experimental research predominantly relies on limited-outcome lotteries, an oversimplified representation distant from real-world investment dynamics. To bridge this research gap, we conducted a rigorously pre-registered experiment. Our study delves into individuals’ preferences for investment opportunities, examining the influence of skewness of continuous probability distributions of returns. We document an inclination towards positively skewed outcome distributions. Furthermore, we uncovered a substitution effect between risk appetite and the sign of skewness. Finally, we unveiled a robust positive correlation between skewness-seeking behavior and a propensity for speculative behavior. Simultaneously, a distinct negative correlation surfaced between skewness-seeking behavior and the perceived risk associated with positive skewness.

Journal article

Welfare and competition in expert advice markets

Albertazzi, Andrea; Ploner, Matteo; Vaccari, Federico

Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization | Vol. 219 | pp. 74–103

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Authors: Albertazzi, Andrea; Ploner, Matteo; Vaccari, Federico

Abstract: We perform a controlled experiment to study the welfare effects of competition within a strategic communication environment. Two equally informed senders with conflicting interests can misreport information at a cost. We compare a treatment where only one sender communicates to a treatment where both senders privately communicate with a decision-maker, all else equal. Data show that competition fails to improve decision-making and harms senders’ welfare. As a result, the overall market welfare is significantly lower under competition. In both treatments, senders reveal less information, and decision-makers obtain less than the most informative equilibria predict. However, they still reveal and get more information compared to other equilibria.

2023 1 item

1 journal article

Journal article

The right person for the right job: workers’ prosociality as a screening device

Bigoni, Maria; Ploner, Matteo; Vu, Thi-Thanh-Tam

Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization | Vol. 212 | pp. 53–73

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Authors: Bigoni, Maria; Ploner, Matteo; Vu, Thi-Thanh-Tam

Abstract: The impact of workers’ non-pecuniary motivation on their productivity is a fundamental issue in labor economics. Previous studies indicate that prosocially motivated workers may perform better when assigned to jobs having socially desirable implications – even if effort is non-contractible and they are offered a low-powered fixed-compensation scheme – as compared to a standard job with an effort-contingent payment. This suggests that profit-maximizing employers should assign workers to different jobs, based on workers’ prosociality. We run an experiment to explore the link between workers’ prosociality and their level of effort under a prosocial and a standard job. Our experimental results provide some support to the hypothesis that selfish employers exploit the information on workers’ prosociality to assign them the type of job that would be most profitable from the firm’s perspective. However, the prosocial motivation of employers emerges as a second important determinant of their contract choice: employers’ prosociality drives their contract choice, when the worker is not prosocial.

2022 2 items

2 journal articles

Journal article

Boosting or nudging energy consumption? The importance of cognitive aspects when adopting non-monetary interventions

Caballero, Nicolas; Ploner, Matteo

Energy Research & Social Science | Vol. 91 | pp. 102734

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Authors: Caballero, Nicolas; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: Identifying effective behaviour-change interventions to promote energy conservation in the residential sphere has been the topic of extensive empirical research. While existing literature has advised several successful interventions, their context-dependency is still an open question. Furthermore, existing evidence has primarily focused on trialling nudges, that is, interventions that influence behaviour directly by changing aspects of the decision environment and circumventing cognitive bias. Boosts, which instead aim to influence behaviour by fostering the competences of decision-makers and correcting bias, are still under-researched in this domain. We present the results of an online experiment where we compare the effects of a nudge-like, and a boost-like intervention on decisions in an incentive-compatible energy management task. These interventions are trialled in relatively high income and low income populations. Finally, we repeat the experiment with the same participants after removing the interventions. Our results show that income is a significant determinant of performance in the task, with the higher income cohort performing better than the lower income counterpart. However, this difference is largely explained by underlying idiosyncratic factors, namely the level of cognitive competences of participants. Furthermore, both boosting and nudging approaches brought energy savings close to the ceiling of achievable goals, but the boosting approach proved more challenging for participants with lower cognitive competences. Finally, we report evidence of intertemporal spillovers. We conclude by highlighting directions of future research to further assess the interplay between intervention choice and cognitive aspects in the field, to design effective behaviour-change policies in an ethical and targeted manner.

Journal article

Impulse balancing versus equilibrium learning an experimental study of competitive portfolio selection

Avrahami, Judith et al.

Evolutionary and Institutional Economics Review

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Authors: Avrahami, Judith; Güth, Werner; Kareev, Yaakov; Ploner, Matteo

2021 4 items

4 journal articles

Journal article

Energy saving in a simulated environment: An online experiment of the interplay between nudges and financial incentives

Fanghella, Valeria; Ploner, Matteo; Tavoni, Massimo

Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics | Vol. 93

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Authors: Fanghella, Valeria; Ploner, Matteo; Tavoni, Massimo

Abstract: Though nudges are gaining attention as complements to financial incentives, evidence of the interplay between these two policy instruments is lacking. Here, we discuss and evaluate how combinations of financial policies and nudges affect behaviors. Through a framed online experiment, we assess the effect of combining financial incentives (monetary reward) with nudges (goal setting and feedback). We introduce an innovative incentive-compatible energy-saving task: participants optimize their virtual energy consumption on a simulated washing machine. Our findings do not show evidence of synergies between traditional and behavioral interventions. On the contrary, the nudge seems to divert participants’ attention from the financial incentive.

Journal article

Trading fast and slow: The role of deliberation in experimental financial markets

Ferri, Giovanni; Ploner, Matteo; Rizzolli, Matteo

Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance | Vol. 32 | pp. 100593

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Authors: Ferri, Giovanni; Ploner, Matteo; Rizzolli, Matteo

Abstract: Financial bubbles cause misallocation of resources and even systemic crises. Experimental finance has long studied both the determinants of bubbles and institutional measures to prevent them. Within the framework of the dual-process theory, we experimentally investigate whether traders under higher time pressure (Fast condition) behave differently than traders under lower time pressure (Slow condition). Relative to the Fast condition, the Slow condition dampens market price volatility, dramatically reduces the spread between ask and bid limit orders, and leads to higher equality in payoffs.

Journal article

When do the expectations of others matter? Experimental evidence on distributional justice and guilt aversion

Ghidoni, Riccardo; Ploner, Matteo

Theory and Decision | Vol. 91 | No. 2 | pp. 189–234

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Authors: Ghidoni, Riccardo; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: Distributional justice—measured by the proportionality between effort exerted and rewards obtained—and guilt aversion—triggered by not fulfilling others’ expectations—are widely acknowledged fundamental sources of pro-social behavior. We design three experiments to study the relevance of these sources of behavior when considered in interaction. In particular, we investigate whether subjects fulfill others’ expectations also when this could produce inequitable allocations that conflict with distributional justice considerations. Our results confirm that both justice considerations and guilt aversion are important drivers of pro-social behavior, with the former having an overall stronger impact than the latter. Expectations of others are less relevant in environments more likely to nurture equitable outcomes.

Journal article

When the state does not play dice: aggressive audit strategies foster tax compliance

Mittone, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo; Verrina, Eugenio

Social Choice and Welfare | Vol. 57 | No. 3 | pp. 591–615

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Authors: Mittone, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo; Verrina, Eugenio

Abstract: We experimentally test the effect of aggressive audit strategies on tax compliance. Taxpayers first go through a phase of audits managed by a human tax agent who is requested to follow a rule imposed by a fair random device. However, the tax agent can freely decide to break the rule and over-inspect. Afterward, taxpayers are exposed to a genuinely random audit process governed by an algorithm, which makes compliance a strategically dominated option. We find that taxpayers are generally over-inspected by the human tax agents and react to this with nearly full compliance. Our main result is that these high levels of compliance also persist when controls are implemented by the algorithm. This suggests that tax authorities can use aggressive audit strategies to raise and sustain tax compliance.

2020 5 items

1 book chapter | 4 journal articles

Journal article

Exploration and delegation in risky choices

Ploner, Matteo; Saredi, Viola

Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics | Vol. 88 | pp. 101580

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Authors: Ploner, Matteo; Saredi, Viola

Abstract: We experimentally investigate delegation in risky choices in a principal-agent framework. Agents are asked to build a portfolio for their principals by selecting among prospects that are presented either in a conventional descriptive way or are experienced through sampling (i.e., clicking paradigm). Principals are, however, offered the opportunity to avoid delegation and build their portfolio by paying a fee. We find that portfolios built by principals are more efficient in terms of mean-variance ratio and more ambitious in terms of expected returns (and risk) than those built by the delegated agents. The higher quality of the principal’s portfolios is associated with higher effort exerted in the experience framework by principals than by agents. Principals anticipate differences in portfolio’s performance but pay a large premium that negatively impacts on their final earnings.

Journal article

More competition in delegated portfolio management: A win-win situation? An experimental analysis

Balmus, Tatiana; Huber, Juergen; Ploner, Matteo

Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization | Vol. 178 | pp. 777–800

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Authors: Balmus, Tatiana; Huber, Juergen; Ploner, Matteo

Journal article

Taylor-made behavioral interventions: The importance of the decision-making process

Ploner, Matteo

Giornale Italiano di Psicologia | Vol. 47 | No. 2 | pp. 495–498

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Authors: Ploner, Matteo

Journal article

The stability of conditional cooperation: beliefs alone cannot explain the decline of cooperation in social dilemmas

Andreozzi, Luciano; Ploner, Matteo; Saral, Ali Seyhun

Scientific Reports | Vol. 10 | No. 1

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Authors: Andreozzi, Luciano; Ploner, Matteo; Saral, Ali Seyhun

Abstract: An often-replicated result in the experimental literature on social dilemmas is that a large share of subjects choose conditionally cooperative strategies. Cooperation generated by such choices is notoriously unstable, as individuals reduce their contributions to the public good in reaction to other subjects’ free-riding. This has led to the widely-held conclusion that cooperation observed in experiments (and its decline) is mostly driven by imperfect reciprocity. In this study, we explore the possibility that the type of reciprocally cooperative choices observed in experiments may themselves evolve over time. We do so by observing the evolution of subjects’ choices in an anonymously repeated social dilemma. Our results show that a significant fraction of reciprocally cooperative subjects become unconditional defectors in the course of the experiment, while the reverse is rarely observed.

Book chapter

Distorsioni comportamentali: eccesso di fiducia nei propri mezzi, avversione miope alle perdite e inerzia decisionale

Mittone, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo

Neurofinanza: Le Basi Neuronali delle Scelte Finanziarie

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Authors: Mittone, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo

2019 1 item

1 journal article

Journal article

Is the victim Max (Planck) or Moritz? How victim type and social value orientation affect dishonest behavior

Soraperra, Ivan; Weisel, Ori; Ploner, Matteo

Journal of Behavioral Decision Making

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Authors: Soraperra, Ivan; Weisel, Ori; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: textlessdiv class=“abstract-group”

2018 2 items

2 journal articles

Journal article

Fostering the best execution regime: An experiment about pecuinary sanctions and accountability in fiduciary money management

Casal, S.; Ploner, M.; Sproten, A.N.

Economic Inquiry | Vol. 57 | No. 1 | pp. 600–616

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Authors: Casal, S.; Ploner, M.; Sproten, A.N.

Abstract: © 2018 Western Economic Association International. Asset management often involves a conflict of interests between investors and fund managers. A main goal of financial regulators is to identify and mitigate this conflict. This article focuses on measures that may foster protection of investors’ interests. In an experiment capturing the essential elements of asset management, we find that managers’ accountability does not prevent their opportunistic behavior if not backed by a threat of punishment. Further, investors inefficiently sanction managers if not completely aware of managers’ choices. To effectively protect investors in financial intermediations, financial regulators should ensure both managers’ accountability and a credible sanctioning system.

Journal article

On the malleability of fairness ideals: Spillover effects in partial and impartial allocation tasks

Dengler-Roscher, Kathrin et al.

Journal of Economic Psychology | Vol. 65 | pp. 60–74

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Authors: Dengler-Roscher, Kathrin; Montinari, Natalia; Panganiban, Marian; Ploner, Matteo; Werner, Benedikt

Abstract: How malleable are people’s fairness ideals? Although fairness is an oft-invoked concept in allocation situations, it is still unclear whether and to what extent people’s allocations reflect their fairness ideals. We investigate in a laboratory experiment whether people’s fairness ideals are sensitive to spillover effects associated with the specific order of allocation tasks. Participants first generate resources in a real-effort task and then distribute them. In the partial allocation task, the participant determines the earnings for herself and another participant. In the impartial allocation task, the participant determines the earnings for two other participants. We also manipulate the participants’ experience, i.e., whether they took part in similar allocation experiments before. We find that participants are more likely to allocate more resources to themselves than what they earned in the real-effort task when they decide partially. Exclusively for inexperienced participants, deciding impartially first dampens selfish behavior when they decide partially.

2017 4 items

1 book chapter | 3 journal articles

Journal article

Hold on to it? An experimental analysis of the disposition effect

Ploner, M.

Judgment and Decision Making | No. 2

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Authors: Ploner, M.

Abstract: © 2017, Society for Judgment and Decision making. All rights reserved.This paper experimentally investigates a well-known anomaly in portfolio management, i.e., the fact that paper losses are realized less than paper gains (disposition effect). I confirm the existence of the disposition effect in a simple risky task in which choices are taken sequentially. However, when choices are planned ahead and a contingent plan is defined, a reversal in the disposition effect is observed.

Journal article

Mentally perceiving how means achieve ends

Güth, Werner; Ploner, Matteo

Rationality and Society | Vol. 29 | No. 2 | pp. 203–225

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Authors: Güth, Werner; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: Mental modeling ranges from pure categorization, for example, of linguistic concepts, to cognitive representation of complex decision tasks involving stochastic uncertainty and strategic interaction. In the tradition of consequentialistic bounded rationality, we assume to choose among choice alternatives by anticipating their likely implications. Such deliberation basically requires causal relationships linking own choices (means) and determinants beyond own control, such as chance events and choices by others (scenarios), to the relevant outcome variables (ends). We suggest a general framework of mental representation whose aspects are illustrated for stochastic choice and strategic interaction tasks. We also discuss how this framework can be experimentally implemented, showing how experimental research can shed light on mental modeling and—more generally—cognitive processes, in addition to eliciting the usual choice data.

Journal article

Reacting to unfairness: Group identity and dishonest behavior

DellaValle, Nives; Ploner, Matteo

Games | Vol. 8 | No. 3 | pp. 1–18

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Authors: DellaValle, Nives; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: We experimentally investigate whether individuals are more likely to engage in dishonest behavior after having experienced unfairness perpetrated by an individual with a salient group identity. Two individuals generate an endowment together, but only one can decide how to share it. They either share the same group identity or have distinct group identities. Then, they approach a task in which they can opportunistically engage in dishonest behavior. Our results show that when individuals share the same group identity, unfair distributive decisions do not trigger a dishonest reaction. In contrast, when different group identities coexist, dishonest behavior is observed as a reaction to unfairness.

Book chapter

L’avversione alle perdite e l’inerzia nelle decisioni finanziarie

Ploner, Matteo

Le sfide dell’educazione finanziaria | No. 84

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Authors: Ploner, Matteo

2016 2 items

2 journal articles

Journal article

Buying and Selling Risk: An Experiment Investigating Evaluation Asymmetries

Güth, Werner; Ploner, Matteo; Soraperra, Ivan

Review of Behavioral Economics

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Authors: Güth, Werner; Ploner, Matteo; Soraperra, Ivan

Journal article

I did it your way. An experimental investigation of peer effects in investment choices

Delfino, Alexia; Marengo, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo

Journal of Economic Psychology | Vol. 54 | pp. 113–123

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Authors: Delfino, Alexia; Marengo, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: We experimentally investigate imitation in investment choices and focus on cognitive aspects of decision making. At this aim, we manipulate three main dimensions of choice: time pressure, normative content of social information, and uncertainty of the investment. We document the existence of imitation. In line with our hypotheses, a piece of information which is more representative of average group behavior induces stronger imitation. Furthermore, higher time pressure fosters imitation. In contrast to our hypothesis, imitation is weaker for uncertain investments than for risky investments.

2015 1 item

1 journal article

Journal article

Cooperative Attitudes Among Workers of Social Cooperatives: Evidence from an Artefactual Field Experiment

Mittone, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo

Voluntas | Vol. 26 | No. 2 | pp. 510–530

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Authors: Mittone, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: Mycotoxins are small (MW approximately 700), toxic chemical products formed as secondary metabolites by a few fungal species that readily colonise crops and contaminate them with toxins in the field or after harvest. Ochratoxins and Aflatoxins are mycotoxins of major significance and hence there has been significant research on broad range of analytical and detection techniques that could be useful and practical. Due to the variety of structures of these toxins, it is impossible to use one standard technique for analysis and/or detection. Practical requirements for high-sensitivity analysis and the need for a specialist laboratory setting create challenges for routine analysis. Several existing analytical techniques, which offer flexible and broad-based methods of analysis and in some cases detection, have been discussed in this manuscript. There are a number of methods used, of which many are lab-based, but to our knowledge there seems to be no single technique that stands out above the rest, although analytical liquid chromatography, commonly linked with mass spectroscopy is likely to be popular. This review manuscript discusses (a) sample pre-treatment methods such as liquid-liquid extraction (LLE), supercritical fluid extraction (SFE), solid phase extraction (SPE), (b) separation methods such as (TLC), high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), gas chromatography (GC), and capillary electrophoresis (CE) and (c) others such as ELISA. Further currents trends, advantages and disadvantages and future prospects of these methods have been discussed.

2014 3 items

3 journal articles

Journal article

Are default contributions sticky? An experimental analysis of defaults in public goods provision

Cappelletti, Dominique; Mittone, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo

Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization | Vol. 108 | pp. 331–342

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Authors: Cappelletti, Dominique; Mittone, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: Previous research provides compelling evidence that defaults affect individual behaviour in several domains. However, evidence of their influence in strategic interaction is scant. We experimentally investigate the effect of defaults on contributions to a public good and attempt to shed light on potential channels through which they operate. Our main experimental findings show that defaults influence contribution behaviour: preference for a suggested contribution significantly increases when it is presented as the default. However, this effect seems not to operate primarily through information conveyance or expectations about others’ behaviour. Default contributions, thus, appear to have an attractive power that goes beyond recommendation signals and expectation influences.

Journal article

Community projects: an experimental analysis of a fair implementation process

Cicognani, Simona et al.

Social Choice and Welfare | Vol. 44 | No. 1 | pp. 109–132

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Authors: Cicognani, Simona; D’Ambrosio, Anna; Güth, Werner; Pfuderer, Simone; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: We define and experimentally test a public provision mechanism that meets three basic ethical requirements and allows community members to influence, via monetary bids, which of several projects is implemented. For each project, participants are assigned personal values, which can be positive or negative. We provide either public or private information about personal values. This produces two distinct public provision games, which are experimentally implemented and analyzed for various projects. In spite of the complex experimental task, participants do not rely on bidding their own personal values as an obvious simple heuristic whose general acceptance would result in fair and efficient outcomes. Rather, they rely on strategic underbidding. Although underbidding is affected by projects’ characteristics, the provision mechanism mostly leads to the implementation of the most efficient project. © 2014, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.

Journal article

Providing revenue-generating projects under a fair mechanism: An experimental analysis

Güth, Werner et al.

Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization | Vol. 108 | pp. 410–419

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Authors: Güth, Werner; Koukoumelis, Anastasios; Levati, M. Vittoria; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: This paper considers a procedurally fair provision mechanism that allows members of a small group to determine, through their bids, which project to implement. Previous experiments with (only) costly projects have demonstrated that the mechanism is efficiency enhancing. Our experiment tests whether the mechanism remains conducive to efficiency when revenue-generating, but less efficient, projects are made available. We find that this is not the case. Additionally, we detect no significant difference in bid levels depending on whether mixed valuations are present or absent, and on whether the others’ valuations are known or unknown. We interpret these results as evidence that the availability of revenue-generating projects engenders a biased perception of the efficient costly project.

2013 4 items

4 journal articles

Journal article

Does Procedural Fairness Crowd Out Other-Regarding Concerns? A Bidding Experiment

Güth, Werner; Levati, M. Vittoria; Ploner, Matteo

Journal of Institutional and Theoretical Economics JITE | Vol. 169 | No. 3 | pp. 433–450

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Authors: Güth, Werner; Levati, M. Vittoria; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: Bidding rules that guarantee procedural fairness may induce morebidding and moderate other-regarding concerns. Here, weprocedural fairness as in Guth (2011). In our experiment, wecommonly known true values and only two bidders to implement a-case scenario for other-regarding concerns. The two-by-twodesign varies ownership of the single indivisible commoditythe price rule. We find more equilibrium behavior under thefairer price rule, although this does not completely crowdother-regarding concerns. In addition, the limits of proceduralare much more important than expected.

Journal article

Group membership, team preferences, and expectations

Guala, Francesco; Mittone, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo

Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization | Vol. 86 | pp. 183–190

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Authors: Guala, Francesco; Mittone, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: Group membership is a powerful determinant of social behaviour in a variety of experimental games. Its effect may be channelled primarily via the beliefs of group members, or directly change their social preferences. We report an experiment with a prisoner’s dilemma with multiple actions, in which we manipulate players’ beliefs and show that group identity has a consistent positive effect on cooperation only when there is common knowledge of group affiliation. We also test the robustness of the minimal group effect using three different manipulations: one manipulation fails to induce group identity, and we observe an unsystematic effect of group membership when knowledge of affiliation is asymmetric. © 2012 Elsevier B.V.

Journal article

Peer effects at campus cafeterias: An empirical investigation into imitation and social proximity

Ploner, M.

Journal of Evolutionary Economics | Vol. 23 | No. 1

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Authors: Ploner, M.

Abstract: This study investigates the voluntary allocation of monetary resources to future food consumption by customers of campus cafeterias. A rich dataset allows us to infer social proximity of cafeteria customers and to measure social spillovers in allocation decisions. We show that individuals tend to imitate directly observed behavior and that close social proximity further encourages imitation. © 2012 Springer-Verlag.

Journal article

Self-image and moral balancing: An experimental analysis

Ploner, Matteo; Regner, Tobias

Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization | Vol. 93 | pp. 374–383

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Authors: Ploner, Matteo; Regner, Tobias

Abstract: In our experiment, a dictator game variant, the reported outcome of a die roll determines the endowment (low/high) in a subsequent dictator game. In one treatment the experimenter is present and no cheating is possible, while in another subjects can enter the result of the roll themselves. Moral self-image is also manipulated in the experiment preceding ours. The aim of this experimental set up is to analyze dynamic aspects of moral behavior.When cheating is possible, substantially more high endowments are claimed and transfers of high-endowed dictators are bigger than when cheating is not possible (mediated by the preceding moral self-image manipulation). The preceding manipulations also have a direct effect on generosity, when subjects have to report the roll of the die truthfully. Moral balancing appears to be an important factor in individual decision making. © 2013 Elsevier B.V.

2012 5 items

5 journal articles

Journal article

Asset Legitimacy and Distributive Justice in the Dictator Game: An Experimental Analysis

Mittone, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo

Journal of Behavioral Decision Making | Vol. 25 | No. 2 | pp. 135–142

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Authors: Mittone, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: Distributive justice seems to guide behavior in reward allocation tasks in which subjects in a group jointly produce an endowment that is then allocated by a member of the group. It has been shown that allocators aim to preserve the proportionality between inputs (e.g., effort) and outputs (e.g., monetary rewards) of those in the group, even when this comes at a cost to themselves.We experimentally investigated whether justice considerations of this kind play a role in a double-blind dictator game when the assets to be allocated are generated exclusively through the effort of the decision maker. The experiment shows that distributive justice is an important source of motivation in highly demanding social environments in which reputational concerns and reciprocity are absent. This finding has been corroborated by an independent validity check and may have important implications for previous experimental findings and for the economics of charity

Journal article

Book Review

Ploner, Matteo

The Journal of Socio-Economics

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Authors: Ploner, Matteo

Journal article

Hidden costs of control: Four repetitions and an extension

Ziegelmeyer, Anthony; Schmelz, Katrin; Ploner, Matteo

Experimental Economics | Vol. 15 | No. 2 | pp. 323–340

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Authors: Ziegelmeyer, Anthony; Schmelz, Katrin; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: We report four repetitions of Falk and Kosfeld’s (Am. Econ. Rev. 96(5):1611–1630, 2006) low and medium control treatments with 476 subjects. Each repetition employs a sample drawn from a standard subject pool of students and demographics vary across samples. We largely confirm the existence of hidden costs of control but, contrary to the original study, hidden costs of control are usually not substantial enough to significantly undermine the effectiveness of economic incentives. Our subjects were asked, at the end of the experimental session, to complete a questionnaire in which they had to state their work motivation in hypothetical scenarios. Our questionnaires are identical to the ones administered in Falk and Kosfeld’s (Am. Econ. Rev. 96(5):1611–1630, 2006) questionnaire study. In contrast to the game play data, our questionnaire data are similar to those of the original questionnaire study. In an attempt to solve this puzzle, we report an extension with 228 subjects where performance-contingent earnings are absent i.e. both principals and agents are paid according to a flat participation fee. We observe that hidden costs significantly outweigh benefits of control under hypothetical incentives.

Journal article

Satisficing and prior-free optimality in price competition

Güth, Werner; Levati, Maria Vittoria; Ploner, Matteo

Economic Inquiry | Vol. 50 | No. 2 | pp. 470–483

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Authors: Güth, Werner; Levati, Maria Vittoria; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: On a heterogeneous experimental oligopoly market, sellers choose a price, specify a set-valued prior-free conjecture about the others’ behavior, and form their own profit-aspiration for each element of their conjecture. We formally define the concepts of satisficing and prior-free optimality and check if seller participants behave in accordance with them. We find that seller participants are satisficers, but fail to be “prior-free” optimal.

Journal article

Would you mind if I get more? An experimental study of the envy game

Casal, Sandro et al.

Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization | Vol. 84 | No. 3 | pp. 857–865

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Authors: Casal, Sandro; Güth, Werner; Jia, Mofei; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: Envy is often the cause of mutually harmful outcomes. We experimentally study the impact of envy in a bargaining setting in which there is no conflict in material interests: a proposer, holding the role of residual claimant, chooses the size of the pie to be shared with a responder, whose share is exogenously fixed. Responders can accept or reject the proposal, with game types differing in the consequences of rejection: all four combinations of (not) self-harming and (not) other-harming are considered. We find that envy leads responders to reject high proposer claims, especially when rejection harms the proposer. Notwithstanding, maximal claims by proposers are predominant for all game types. This generates conflict and results in a considerable loss of efficiency. © 2012 Elsevier B.V.

2011 4 items

4 journal articles

Journal article

Are conditional cooperators willing to forgo efficiency gains? Evidence from a public goods experiment

Levati, M. Vittoria; Ploner, Matteo; Traub, Stefan

New Zealand Economic Papers | Vol. 45 | No. 1-2 | pp. 47–58

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Authors: Levati, M. Vittoria; Ploner, Matteo; Traub, Stefan

Abstract: We use a two-person public goods experiment to investigate how much agents value conditional cooperation when symmetric positive contributions entail efficiency losses. Asymmetric marginal per capita returns allow only the highproductivity player to increase group payoffs when contributing positive amounts. Asymmetric contributions, however, yield unequal individual payoffs. To assess a priori cooperative preferences, we measure individual ‘valueorientations’ by means of the decomposed game technique. We find that contributions remain negligible throughout the experiment, suggesting that people are not willing to contribute positive amounts if this may lead to damage efficiency. © 2011 New Zealand Association of Economists Incorporated.

Journal article

Being of two minds: Ultimatum offers under cognitive constraints

Cappelletti, Dominique; Güth, Werner; Ploner, Matteo

Journal of Economic Psychology | Vol. 32 | No. 6 | pp. 940–950

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Authors: Cappelletti, Dominique; Güth, Werner; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: We experimentally investigate how proposers in the Ultimatum Game behave when their cognitive resources are constrained by time pressure and cognitive load. In a dual-system perspective, when proposers are cognitively constrained and thus their deliberative capacity is reduced, their offers are more likely to be influenced by spontaneous affective reactions. We find that under time pressure proposers make higher offers. This increase appears not to be explained by more reliance on an equality heuristic. Analysing the behaviour of the same individual in both roles leads us to favour the strategic over the other-regarding explanation for the observed increase in offers. In contrast, proposers who are under cognitive load do not behave differently from proposers who are not. ?? 2011 Elsevier B.V.

Journal article

Let me see you! A video experiment on the social dimension of risk preferences

Güth, Werner; Vittoria Levati, M.; Ploner, Matteo

AUCO Czech Economic Review | Vol. 5 | No. 2 | pp. 211–225

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Authors: Güth, Werner; Vittoria Levati, M.; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: Previous studies have shown that individuals are less other-regarding when their own payoff is risky than when it is sure. Empirical observations also indicate that people care more about identifiable than unidentifiable others. We report on an experiment designed to explore whether rendering the other identifiable-via a speechless video-can affect the relation between other-regarding concerns and preferences over social risk. For this sake, we elicit risk attitudes under two treatments differing in whether the actor can see the other or not. We find that seeing the other does not affect behavior significantly: regardless of the treatment, individuals are self-oriented as to allocation of risk, though they are other-regarding with respect to expected payoffs.

Journal article

Peer pressure, social spillovers, and reciprocity: An experimental analysis

Mittone, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo

Experimental Economics | Vol. 14 | No. 2 | pp. 203–222

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Authors: Mittone, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: This study examines whether reciprocity is affected by what others know and do. Two types of social effects are investigated within the framework of a modified investment game. On the one hand, we assess the role played by the awareness that own choices are observed by another trustee—i.e., peer pressure. On the other hand, we measure the interaction between trustees’ choices—i.e., social spillovers. We find that peer pressure fosters reciprocity and, to a lesser extent, so do social spillovers.

2010 2 items

2 journal articles

Journal article

Satisficing in strategic environments: A theoretical approach and experimental evidence

Güth, Werner; Vittoria Levati, M.; Ploner, Matteo

Journal of Socio-Economics | Vol. 39 | No. 5 | pp. 554–561

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Authors: Güth, Werner; Vittoria Levati, M.; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: The satisficing approach is generalized and applied to finite n-person games. We formally define the concept of satisficing and propose a theory that allows satisficing players to make ” optimal” decisions without being equipped with any prior. We also review some experiments on strategic games illustrating and partly supporting our theoretical approach. © 2009 Elsevier Inc.

Journal article

Skills, division of labor and performance in collective inventions: Evidence from open source software

Giuri, Paola et al.

International Journal of Industrial Organization | Vol. 28 | No. 1 | pp. 54–68

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Authors: Giuri, Paola; Ploner, Matteo; Rullani, Francesco; Torrisi, Salvatore

Abstract: This paper investigates the skills and the division of labor among participants in collective inventions. Our analysis draws on a large sample of projects registered at Sourceforge.net, the world’s largest incubator of open source software activity. We test the hypothesis that skill variety of participants is associated with project performance. We also explore whether the level of modularization of project activities is correlated with performance. Our econometric estimations show that skill heterogeneity is associated with project survival and performance. However, the relationship between skill diversity and performance is non-monotonic. Design modularity is also positively associated with the performance of the project. Finally, the interaction between skill heterogeneity and modularity is negatively associated with performance. © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

2008 5 items

5 journal articles

Journal article

Is Satisficing Absorbable? An Experimental Study

Güth, Werner; Levati, M. Vittoria; Ploner, Matteo

Journal of Behavioral Finance | Vol. 9 | No. 2 | pp. 95–105

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Authors: Güth, Werner; Levati, M. Vittoria; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: We experimentally investigate whether the satisficing approach is absorbable, that is, whether it still applies when participants become aware of it. In a setting where an investor decides between a riskless bond and either one or two risky assets, we familiarize participants with the satisficing calculus applied to specific portfolio selection tasks. After experimenting with this calculus repeatedly, participants can either continue using it or select their portfolio freely. The results reveal some absorbability of the satisficing approach in the simpler two-state setting, whereas more complexity renders the satisficing heuristics more difficult and their absorption less likely.

Journal article

On the social dimension of time and risk preferences: An experimental study

Güth, Werner; Levati, M. Vittoria; Ploner, Matteo

Economic Inquiry | Vol. 46 | No. 2 | pp. 261–272

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Authors: Güth, Werner; Levati, M. Vittoria; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: When explaining risk taking, intertemporal allocation, and distributing behavior, economists rely on risk, time, and other-regarding preferences but offer no guidance on how these three crucial aspects are interrelated. We report on an experiment exploring such interrelation. For this sake, we compare evaluations of several prospects, each of which allocates certain or risky and immediate or delayed payoffs to the actor and to another participant. We find that individuals are self-oriented as to social allocation of risk and delay and other-regarding with respect to expected payoffs. (JEL C91, D63, D81) © 2007 Western Economic Association International.

Journal article

Social identity and trust-An experimental investigation

Güth, Werner; Levati, M. Vittoria; Ploner, Matteo

Journal of Socio-Economics | Vol. 37 | No. 4 | pp. 1293–1308

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Authors: Güth, Werner; Levati, M. Vittoria; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: We experimentally examine how group identity affects trust behavior in an investment game. In one treatment, group identity is induced purely by minimal groups. In other treatments, group members are additionally related by outcome interdependence established in a prior public goods game. Moving from the standard investment game (where no group identity is prompted) to minimal group identity to two-dimensional group identity, we find no significant differences in trust decisions. However, trust is significantly and positively correlated with contribution decisions, suggesting that “social” trust is behaviorally important. © 2007 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Journal article

The impact of payoff interdependence on trust and trustworthiness

Güth, Werner; Levati, M. Vittoria; Ploner, Matteo

German Economic Review | Vol. 9 | No. 1 | pp. 87–95

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Authors: Güth, Werner; Levati, M. Vittoria; Ploner, Matteo

Abstract: In one-shot investment games where each player’s payoff is a convex combination of own and other’s profit, we measure trust by the amount given to the trustee and trustworthiness by the amount returned to the trustor by the trustee. Does the degree of payoff interdependence increase both trust and trustworthiness or one but not the other or neither of them? According to our experimental data, trust remains unaffected by the extent of interdependence whereas trustworthiness reacts positively to it. © Verein für Socialpolitik and Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2008.

Journal article

La cooperazione nelle cooperative sociali italiane: evidenza congiunta da un artefactual field experiment e da risposte autonome ad un questionario

Mittone, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo

Impresa Sociale | pp. 239–260

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Authors: Mittone, Luigi; Ploner, Matteo

2007 1 item

1 journal article

Journal article

An explorative study of skills and openness in Open Source Software projects

Giuri, Paola et al.

Sinergie | Vol. 26/07 | No. Rapporti di Ricerca | pp. 275–287