How do stereotypes affect fiscal solidarity in the European Union? A survey experiment

Last registered on September 15, 2023
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
How do stereotypes affect fiscal solidarity in the European Union? A survey experiment
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0012107
Initial registration date
September 13, 2023

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
September 15, 2023, 9:00 AM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Country
Germany
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Valentin Kecht
Affiliation
University of Bonn
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Adam Brzezinski
PI Affiliation
University of Oxford
Contact Investigator
PI Name
Raphael Max
PI Affiliation
Technical University of Munch
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Additional Trial Information

Status
On going
Start date
2022-08-01
End date
2024-12-31
Keywords
Behavior, Electoral
Additional Keywords
Fiscal solidarity, European Union, Political Attitudes, Beliefs, Stereotypes
JEL code(s)
H13, H61, H77, H87
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
We analyze preferences and perceptions on the financial contributions of individual EU member states to the budget of the Union, using a representative panel of German households. We ask subjects to estimate the annual gross contribution to the EU budget as a percentage of annual gross national income of the six most populous EU countries. In a next step, the subjects are randomly assigned to treatment groups which receive different information concerning the gross and net contribution of EU countries to the EU budget. Based on the information available to the respondents, they are asked whether they would raise or lower the annual contribution of Germany to the EU budget. In the final question, we confront the subjects in the panel with the question whether other EU countries generally contribute too little to the EU budget.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Brzezinski, Adam , Valentin Kecht and Raphael Max. 2023. "How do stereotypes affect fiscal solidarity in the European Union? A survey experiment ." AEA RCT Registry. September 15. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.12107-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Intervention Start Date
2022-08-01
Intervention End Date
2022-08-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Preferences on Germany’s contribution to the EU, Perceived fairness of other countries’ contributions
Primary Outcomes (explanation)
A categorical variable indicating individuals’ preferences on whether to increase or decrease Germany’s contribution to the EU Budget, or whether to leave it unchanged.

A categorical variable measuring individuals’ perceived fairness of other countries’ contributions

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Prior beliefs on countries’ contributions to the EU budget
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)
Individuals’ prior beliefs about the contributions to the EU budget for the six most populous countries of the EU. To reduce noise, we inform individuals that the average contribution is at 1% of national GNI

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
The study is based on three questions provided in German.

Question 1: Was denken Sie, wie hoch ist der jährliche Bruttobeitrag der folgenden sechs bevölkerungsreichsten Länder der EU zum Budget der EU in Prozent des jährlichen Bruttonationaleinkommens?
English: In your opinion, what is the annual gross contribution of the following six most populous EU countries to the EU budget as a percentage of annual gross national income?

Question 2: Wenn Sie selbst entscheiden könnten: Würden Sie den Beitrag Deutschlands zum Budget der EU erhöhen, verringern oder unverändert lassen?
English: If you had the power to decide, would you increase or decrease Germany’s contribution to the EU budget, or leave it unchanged?

Question 3: Wie sehr stimmen Sie der folgenden Aussage zu: „Andere Länder tragen weniger zum EU-Budget bei als sie sollten.“
English: To what extent do you agree with the following statement: “Other countries contribute less to the EU budget than they should.”

In question 2, subjects are randomly assigned to four different groups. The first group does not receive any information. The second group is informed about Germany's gross annual contribution to the EU budget (in % of national GNI). The third group receives the same information and additionally gets access to the corresponding figures for the five other most populous countries in the EU. The fourth group receives the same information as group three, but receives additional information regarding net contributions of the mentioned countries.
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
The order of the questions is not varied. After question 1, the subjects are randomly assigned to the four groups with the same probability for question 2.
Randomization Unit
Households
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
No clustering
Sample size: planned number of observations
2500 to 3000 individuals
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
Individuals are assigned to each treatment arm with equal probability, i.e. 625-750 individuals per treatment arm.
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
German Association for Experimental Economic Research e.V.
IRB Approval Date
2022-08-23
IRB Approval Number
JYpMDukL
Analysis Plan