Productivity and Cohesion in Inter-ethnic Schools

Last registered on December 06, 2023
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Productivity and Cohesion in Inter-ethnic Schools
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0012559
Initial registration date
November 22, 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
December 06, 2023, 7:50 AM EST

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

Locations

Country
Macedonia (the former Yugoslav Republic of)
Region
Gostivar Municipality

Primary Investigator

Name
Pepi Pandiloski
Affiliation
University of Chicago
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Ari Anisfeld
PI Affiliation
University of Chicago
Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status
On going
Start date
2023-11-21
End date
2025-01-31
Keywords
Education, Post-conflict
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
How to best rebuild human ties in post-conflict settings is a pressing social question. We study how productivity and intergroup preferences are shaped by emphasizing common identity and emphasizing reference groups. In a few high schools, we will randomize pairs of inter-ethnic students, and ask them to play a cooperative video game. We will collect outcomes on productivity during the interaction, and social preferences during the interaction, and a few weeks later.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Anisfeld, Ari and Pepi Pandiloski. 2023. "Productivity and Cohesion in Inter-ethnic Schools." AEA RCT Registry. December 06. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.12559-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Intervention (Hidden)
Intervention Start Date
2023-12-04
Intervention End Date
2024-10-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
1. Productivity
2. Mutual learning
3. Outgroup altruism
4. Willingness to interact with outgroup
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
We will include a control arm and three treatment arms. The control arm will consist of co-ethnic teams. Treatment 1 will estimate the effect of mixing ethnicities on productivity and cohesion. Treatment 2 will emphasize a common identity (school and town), while Treatment 3 will additionally add a common foe (supra-ethnic reference group).
Experimental Design Details
We study how cooperation and intergroup preferences are shaped by emphasizing common identity and emphasizing reference groups. In a framework where agents receive utility from conformity and status, we show how interethnic cooperation can increase by emphasizing common identity (through the conformity channel) and emphasizing a reference group (through the status channel). In ethnically segregated schools, pairs of students will be randomized into different conditions and tasked to play a cooperative video game. Control pairs will be ethnically homogeneous. T1 will estimate the effect of cooperative contact by randomizing ethnically mixed pairs. T2 will estimate the effect of common identity by emphasizing their real common identity during the interaction - their school and town membership. T3 will estimate the added effects of reference groups, by telling players that their final score will be observed by a pair of players from another school. We will collect outcomes on productivity (measure of game scores and learning tricks from each other) during the interaction, and social preferences (altruism and discrimination) immediately after the intervention, and a few weeks later.
Randomization Method
Computer randomization. First, students are assigned to control or one of three treatment arms, then they are paired with a partner from their respective treatment arm.

To the extent possible, we will employ block randomization, where we will pair students within grade and gender.
Randomization Unit
Individual
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
3 high schools
Sample size: planned number of observations
800
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
200 control, 200 contact, 200 common identity, 200 common identity + common foe
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
The University of Chicago Social and Behavioral Sciences Institutional Review Board
IRB Approval Date
2022-12-16
IRB Approval Number
IRB22-1589
Analysis Plan

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials