Job search online: overconfidence, information, and recommender systems

Last registered on March 10, 2025
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Job search online: overconfidence, information, and recommender systems
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0015463
Initial registration date
March 05, 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
March 10, 2025, 9:21 AM EDT

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

Locations

Country
United States of America
Region
New York State

Primary Investigator

Name
Bart de Koning
Affiliation
Cornell University
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Michèle Belot
PI Affiliation
Cornell University
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PI Name
Philipp Kircher
PI Affiliation
Cornell University
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PI Name
Vaios Triantafyllou
PI Affiliation
Cornell University
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Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2025-03-06
End date
2026-04-30
Keywords
Labor
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
D83, J64
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
We conduct a randomized controlled trial to test the impact of providing information about competition for jobs and how this information interacts with a recommender system. We intend to recruit approximately 1700 job seekers in New York State for this study.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Belot, Michèle et al. 2025. "Job search online: overconfidence, information, and recommender systems." AEA RCT Registry. March 10. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.15463-1.0
Sponsors & Partners

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Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Intervention (Hidden)
There are two randomly assigned interventions:
1. A vacancy recommender system
2. Information about competition

Please see the experimental design for how these interventions are assigned, and the pre-analysis plan for more details.
Intervention Start Date
2025-03-06
Intervention End Date
2025-09-30

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
See pre-analysis plan.
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
See pre-analysis plan.
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
See pre-analysis plan.
Experimental Design Details
Job seekers are divided into one of three groups:
1. Control group (has access to basic platform functionality)
2. Recommender control group (has access to recommender system on top of basic platform functionality)
3. Treatment group (has access to recommender system and receives competition information)

Please see the pre-analysis plan for further details.
Randomization Method
Automated randomization at sign-up.
Randomization Unit
Individual
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
1700 individuals.
Sample size: planned number of observations
1700 individuals but we will continue recruiting until our budget runs out or September 30, 2025. Whichever comes first.
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
566 control, 566 recommender control, 566 treatment.
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
See pre-analysis plan.
Supporting Documents and Materials

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IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Cornell Institutional Review Board for Human Participants (IRB)
IRB Approval Date
2025-01-27
IRB Approval Number
IRB0147935
Analysis Plan

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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