Lab-Sophistication: Does Repeated Participation in Laboratory Experiments Affect Pro-Social Behaviour?

Arbeitspapier

Experimental social scientists working at research-intensive institutions deal inevitably with subjects who have most likely participated in previous experiments. It is an important methodological question to know whether participants that have acquired a high level of lab-sophistication show altered pro-social behavioral patterns. In this paper, we focus both on the potential effect of the subjects' lab-sophistication, and on the role of the knowledge about the level of lab-sophistication of the other participants. Our main findings show that while lab-sophistication per se does not significantly affect pro-social behaviour, for sophisticated sub-jects the knowledge about the counterpart's level of (un)sophistication may systematically alter their choices. This result should induce caution among experimenters about whether, in their settings, information about lab-sophistication can be inferred by the participants, due to the characteristics of the recruitment mechanisms, the management of the experimental sessions or to other contextual clues.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: MUNI ECON Working Paper ; No. 2021-06

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Search; Learning; Information and Knowledge; Communication; Belief; Unawareness ; Design of Experiments: Laboratory, Individual ; Design of Experiments: Laboratory, Group Behavior
• Subject: Lab-sophistication ; Experimental Methodology ; External Validity ; Pro-social behaviour ; Cooperation

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Medda, Tiziana ; Pelligra, Vittorio ; Reggiani, Tommaso
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Masaryk University, Faculty of Economics and Administration
• (where): Brno
• (when): 2021

Further information

• DOI: doi:10.5817/WP_MUNI_ECON_2021-06
• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/237415
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:41 AM CET