econ 198 behavioral nature of behavioral econ 2

When prospective participants are invited to pre-register in an experiment, it is important that they are fully aware what the experiment is about before they arrive in the laboratory. 

• True

• False

Answer explanation

It will affect the outcome that you want to test

Unlike in a survey, participants in an economic experiment are recruited in advance.

• True

• False

After participants read the instructions of an experiment, they answer a series of questions to validate that they understood the experiment instructions. If there is a participant who is taking too long to get all answers correctly, it is acceptable for the experimenter to

• politely ask the participant to leave the laboratory quietly

• discreetly check the cause of the delay and give hints on  the correct answers

• 
  approach the subject and ask if he needs any help

• all of the choices listed

A good economic experiment should closely mimic a real-life setting.

• True

• False

Answer explanation

This is to produce cleaner/clearer results (testing a few variables vs. many)

In a dictator game, a dictator's decision to transfer money to the receiver can be explained by

• inequality aversion

  
  

• warm glow

• pure altruism

• all of the choices given

Answer explanation

Warm-glow giving is an economic theory describing the emotional reward of giving to others

Altruism is the belief in or practice of disinterested and selfless concern for the well-being of others

Your experiment uses a modified version of a 'public goods game'. This is a classic game to examine cooperation and the free-riding problem. When you invite participants for this experiment

• to be fair to other participants, it is best to not invite economics students

• 
  economics students can participate because group assignment is random

• exclude economics students because they are smarter than most people
  

• 
  none of the choices given

A group experiment (i.e., players belong to a group) has trial rounds and actual rounds. The instructions clearly indicate that only payoffs in the actual rounds will be paid in cash. At the end of the trial rounds, a subject raises her hand and demands that she receives payment for her performance in the trial rounds. How may an experimenter handle this situation? 

• ban the subject perpetually from participating in any experiment

• reprimand the subject and remind her that she signed a consent form

• show her the section of the instructions regarding payoffs

• 
  all of the choices given

Experiments that use the between-subjects design (as opposed to within-subjects design) commonly need to address

• experimenter demand effect

• learning effect

• order effect

• none of the choices given

Answer explanation

Within-subjects design: encounter all treatments

Between-subjects design: only one treatment encountered

Mixed: some of each; for many tasks

Use of technical terms or jargon in the experiment instructions is desirable because this allows the researchers to validate participants' level of understanding. 

• True

• False

Answer explanation

Instructions are supposed to be understood with simple words so that subjects can actually do the experiment

There are questionnaires that will be given to gauge how much subjects understand the experiment

In the middle of round 5 in a group experiment (i.e., subjects play in groups), a subject raises her hand and informs the experimenter that she wants to quit and leave the room immediately. What would you recommend the experimenter should do?

• stop the experiment session until the issue is resolved

• allow the subject to leave and immediately look for a replacement player

• reprimand the subject and remind her that she signed an informed consent

• request the subject to finish round 5 and then allow her to leave

• none of the above