Cultural Engagement and Immigration Attitudes

Last registered on February 25, 2025
View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Cultural Engagement and Immigration Attitudes
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0014416
Initial registration date
February 24, 2025

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
February 25, 2025, 10:42 AM EST

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

Locations

There is information in this trial unavailable to the public. Use the button below to request access.

Request Information

Primary Investigator

Name
Roberto Rozzi
Affiliation
University of Siena
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Paolo Pin
PI Affiliation
University of Siena
Contact Investigator
PI Name
Alessandro Stringhi
PI Affiliation
University of Siena
Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2025-03-03
End date
2025-05-17
Keywords
Behavior, Other
Additional Keywords
field experiment, cultural engagement, immigration
JEL code(s)
C93, D83, D90
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
This study explores the role of culture in shaping perceptions of hospitality and attitudes towards immigration. By administering focused museum guided tours, we aim to highlight the potential positive impact of culture on societal attitudes, specifically in promoting the welcoming of immigrants. We propose a field experiment studying the impact of culture on perceptions of hospitality and immigration concerns. We will recruit students from the University of Siena and offer guided tours of the Santa Maria della Scala museum. Half of the visits will be standard museum tours, serving as control visits, while the other half will be specialized tours focused on the role of the pilgrimage to encourage reflections on hospitality and integration. The outcomes will be measured through post-visit surveys and participants' willingness to donate to an NGO supporting immigrants. Our research seeks to demonstrate that focused cultural exposure can enhance empathy and support for immigration, emphasizing the importance of culture in building a more inclusive society.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Pin, Paolo, Roberto Rozzi and Alessandro Stringhi. 2025. "Cultural Engagement and Immigration Attitudes." AEA RCT Registry. February 25. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.14416-1.0
Sponsors & Partners

Partner

Name
Fondazione Antico Ospedale Santa Maria della Scala
Type
none
URL
https://www.santamariadellascala.com/
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Focused visit at a museum.
Intervention Start Date
2025-03-03
Intervention End Date
2025-05-17

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
1) Total donations to two NGOs (Italian Council for Refugees and Italian League for Birds Protection).
2) Specific donations to an NGO operating in the migration field (Italian Council for Refugees).
Primary Outcomes (explanation)
We incentivize students to take part in the visit by paying them 20 euros (in Amazon gift cards). After the visit to the museum, students will answer a few questions from a survey. In the first part of the survey, we will ask students how much they want to donate to two NGOs: one operating in the field of migration (Italian Council of Refugees) and one unrelated to migration (Italian League for Birds Protection).

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
1) Self-reported attitudes towards migrants according to the European Social Survey (Round 7).
2) Index on attitudes towards migrants.
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)
In the second part of the survey (answered after the visits), we will ask students some questions from part B of the European Social Survey (Round 7). These questions are aimed to give us a self-reported assessment of students' attitudes towards migrants. Coherently with previous works in the literature (see attached pdf), we will also build an index on attitudes towards migration which is the standardized sum of each other measure. In particular, we will pick donations to ICR, and the answer to the six questions of the ESS.

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
Between subjects design, field experiment
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
Randomization is done in the office before the tours.
Randomization Unit
Session level
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
1 University
Sample size: planned number of observations
The number of subjects will be determined by budget and student availability constraints. In any case, we plan to recruit not less than 164 subjects.
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
82 students allocated to the control visit;
82 students allocated to the treatment visit.
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Two-sided t-test with effect size 0.3 (medium-low effect), alpha 0.05, and beta 0.8.
Supporting Documents and Materials

There is information in this trial unavailable to the public. Use the button below to request access.

Request Information
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Comitato Etico per la Ricerca nelle Scienza Umane e Sociali (CAREUS)
IRB Approval Date
2023-09-14
IRB Approval Number
18/2023
Analysis Plan

There is information in this trial unavailable to the public. Use the button below to request access.

Request Information