@misc{10481/90796,
year = {2024},
url = {https://hdl.handle.net/10481/90796},
abstract = {This thesis studies the effect of different economic incentives on subjects’
decisions within three different settings: i) labor markets, ii) charitable giving, and
iii) dietary habits. The first two chapters involve real effort task laboratory
experiments, whereas chapter three is a field experiment. The variables studied
include, among others, subjects’ performance, choices under potential
discrimination, and children’s responsiveness to a new system of food
assessment. The analysis was carried out through non-parametric tests,
microeconomic modelling and econometric regressions.
Chapter one studies experimentally whether potential perceived discrimination
affects decisions in a labor-market setting with different stereotypes. Participants
are assigned to a seven-person group and randomly allocated a role as a firm or
worker. In each group, there are five workers and two firms. The only information
firms have about each worker is a self-selected avatar (male, female or neutral)
representing a worker’s gender. Each firm then decides which worker to hire.
Depending on the treatment workers are informed about the task to be
performed, either math-related, emotion-related, or they will receive no
information at all. Results show that female workers react to potential
discrimination when they know the task is math-related, but not otherwise. Men
choose similar avatar patterns regardless of the task. Men do perform at much
higher levels in the math-related task, but there is no difference in performance
in the emotion-recognition task, where there is a strong female stereotype.
In chapter two I look at group identity as a trigger to increase charitable giving.
Although group identity has been studied under different related settings, like ingroup/out-group interactions or in Public Goods Games, little has been said on
its effect on charitable behavior. With that objective in mind, I conduct a 2x2
laboratory experiment in which subjects do a real effort task to generate money
with the possibility of donating part, all, or none of that money to a charity.
Depending on the treatment, the real effort task is done individually or in groups
of four people. I also vary whether the donation –which is made privately and
individually regardless of the treatment– is either transferred as a single individual
donation or added to the rest of group members ‘contributions and thus,
transferred as a group donation. Results indicate that doing the task in groups
increases the intensive and extensive margins of charitable giving for both
individual and group donations. Results also show that donating as part of a
group has an effect on the amount donated only when group identity was
previously enhanced.
Finally, chapter three roots within the literature on children’s healthy dietary habits
and incentives to improve their choices. In particular, the field experiment studies
the effect of non-monetary incentivize for children to make healthier food choices
at school. Previous interventions have typically paid participants for their
participation, but this often may not be feasible, neither sustainable in the long
run. We introduce a system in which food items are graded based on their
nutritional value, involving parents or classmates as change agents by providing
them with information regarding the food choices of their children or friends. We
find parents’ involvement in the decision process to be particularly beneficial in
boosting healthy food choices, with very strong results that persist months after
the intervention.},
organization = {Tesis Univ. Granada.},
publisher = {Universidad de Granada},
title = {Experimental evidence on choices related to dietary habits, anticipated discrimination and charitable contributions},
author = {Sánchez González, Ángela},
}