Interventions to Promote Equity in Selection (IPES)

Last registered on March 05, 2025
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Interventions to Promote Equity in Selection (IPES)
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0015473
Initial registration date
March 03, 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 03, 2025, 9:34 AM EST

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

Last updated
March 05, 2025, 10:31 AM EST

Last updated is the most recent time when changes to the trial's registration were published.

Locations

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Primary Investigator

Name
Manuel Munoz
Affiliation
Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2025-03-03
End date
2025-04-30
Keywords
Behavior, Electoral, Labor
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
I investigates whether simple, behaviorally informed prompts can reduce biases in faculty nominations for the “Student Excellence Award” at a university in Colombia. I randomly assign faculty members to one of four conditions (one control group and three treatment prompts) delivered immediately prior to nominating a student. These prompts focus on inclusion, unconscious bias, and explicit commitment to equity. The primary outcome is whether faculty nominate students from historically underrepresented socioeconomic backgrounds at higher rates, as well as changes in the diversity of nominees.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Munoz, Manuel. 2025. "Interventions to Promote Equity in Selection (IPES)." AEA RCT Registry. March 05. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.15473-1.1
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Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
This RCT tests four versions of a brief message shown to faculty immediately before they nominate a student for an Excellence Award:
1. Control (Standard Nomination): A simple request to nominate a student on the basis of academic performance.
2. Inclusion Prompt: Reminds faculty to consider students from all socioeconomic backgrounds and to ensure no deserving student is overlooked.
3. Equity Commitment Prompt: Emphasizes organizational commitment to equity, encouraging nominators to reinforce diversity and inclusion goals.
4. Unconscious Bias Prompt: Highlights the possibility of overlooking less-privileged students due to unconscious biases and invites faculty to reflect on such biases when choosing a student.
Intervention Start Date
2025-03-03
Intervention End Date
2025-04-30

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
I will test differences between control and treatments both by pooling all treatment conditions into one (binary comparison), as well as by comparing control and each treatment conditions (to evaluate the effect of the different messages).
1. Nomination rate: share of faculty that makes a nomination
2. Diversity of nominations: share of low class or female students nominated
3. Quality of nominations: average GPA; also willingness to accept nomination
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
1. Beliefs on exposure: reported share of students from different social groups that faculty have encountered
2. Perceptions of Excellence: Textual answers about what characteristics define an “excellent” student
3. Strategies for success: Textual answers about what strategies could help underperforming students become excellent
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
I will invite all eligible faculty at UNAB to participate in a short online nomination survey.
Before nominating a student, faculty are randomly assigned to see one of four prompts (three treatment conditions plus one control).
1. Control (Standard Nomination): A simple request to nominate a student on the basis of academic performance.
2. Inclusion Prompt: Reminds faculty to consider students from all socioeconomic backgrounds and to ensure no deserving student is
overlooked.
3. Equity Commitment Prompt: Emphasizes organizational commitment to equity, encouraging nominators to reinforce diversity and
inclusion goals.
4. Unconscious Bias Prompt: Highlights the possibility of overlooking less-privileged students due to unconscious biases and invites
faculty to reflect on such biases when choosing a student.
By comparing nomination patterns, I seek to identify which channels (type of message) best encourage nomination of students from underrepresented backgrounds.
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
Randomization is done using computer. I randomize in blocks to balance the following variables: gender (male-female), tenure (yes-no), nominated someone in a previous related event (yes-no)
Randomization Unit
Individual faculty member
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
- Planned Number of Observations: Approximately 670 faculty members are expected to be invited.
- Sample Size by Treatment Arms: Expected ~167 faculty in each of the four arms (Control, Inclusion Prompt, Equity Commitment Prompt, Unconscious Bias Prompt).
Sample size: planned number of observations
- Planned Number of Observations: Approximately 670 faculty members are expected to be invited.
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
N/A
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Universidad Autonoma de Bucaramanga
IRB Approval Date
2025-02-25
IRB Approval Number
N/A
Analysis Plan