Field experiments provide the clearest window into the true impact of many policies, allowing us to understand what works, what does not, and why. Yet, their widespread use has not been accompanied by a deep understanding of the political economy of their adoption in policy circles. This study...

Many economic, political and social environments can be described as contests in which agents exert costly efforts while competing over the distribution of a scarce resource. These environments have been studied using Tullock contests, all-pay auctions and rank-order tournaments. This survey...

Group contests are ubiquitous. Some examples include warfare between countries, competition between political parties, team-incentives within firms, group sports, and rent-seeking. In order to succeed, members of the same group have incentives to cooperate with each other by expending individual...

Leading by example and the provision of incentives are considered as two important means to influence teammates’ behavior and increase team cooperation. How do these two aspects of leadership interact with each other? Do incentives reinforce leading by example, or do they even weaken its...

Leading by example is considered as an important means to influence followers and to increase team performance. In most organizations, however, leading by example does not come alone. To influence followers, leaders simultaneously use a variety of instruments. Most frequently, leaders possess...

We report experimental results from three Colombian villages concerning the impact of a voting mechanism on interpersonal trust and trustworthiness. The vote is purely consultative in that participants are asked to declare in a secret ballot the most “appropriate” plan of action for...

Leading by example is considered an important means to influence followers. In most organizations, however, to influence followers, leaders use a variety of instruments. Most frequently, leaders possess the power to administer rewards or punishments to team members. Do individual rewards or...

Costly competitions between economic agents are modeled as contests. Researchers use laboratory experiments to study contests and test comparative static predictions of contest theory. Commonly, researchers find that participants’ efforts are significantly higher than predicted by the standard...

This is a commentary on Vernon Smith's contributions to experimental economics

Politik und öffentliches Bewusstsein werden zunehmend durch ökonomische Theorien und Handlungsvorschläge mitbestimmt. Kaum ein anderes erkenntnis- und handlungsleitendes Modell hat daher einen vergleichbaren Einfluss wie das Konzept des Homo Oeconomicus. Durch die Entwicklung experimenteller...