Measuring Directed Search: Evidence from Incentivized Vacancy Ratings

Last registered on July 23, 2026
View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Measuring Directed Search: Evidence from Incentivized Vacancy Ratings
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0019193
Initial registration date
July 18, 2026

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
July 23, 2026, 8:04 AM EDT

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
Vincent Selz
Affiliation
Goethe University Frankfurt
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2026-07-19
End date
2027-07-31
Keywords
Behavior, Labor
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
We study how job seekers evaluate job vacancies and form beliefs about application success. In an incentivized online vacancy-rating study, graduating Business and Economics students in the Rhine-Main area rate a series of experimentally constructed vacancies and report, for each, how likely they would be to apply and their perceived probability of receiving an offer. Based on their answers, participants receive a personalized list of five real vacancy recommendations. The hypotheses, design details, and analysis are specified in a pre-analysis plan and in hidden registry fields, which will be made public after data collection ends in order to avoid experimenter demand effects.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Selz, Vincent . 2026. "Measuring Directed Search: Evidence from Incentivized Vacancy Ratings." AEA RCT Registry. July 23. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.19193-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
In order to avoid experimenter demand effects, we describe the study in fields that will not become public until after the experiment is over.
Intervention Start Date
2026-07-19
Intervention End Date
2027-07-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
application intention: “How likely would you apply?”
perceived success probability: “If you applied, what is the probability of receiving an offer?”
Primary Outcomes (explanation)
see pre-analysis plan for details

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
see pre-analysis plan for details
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)
see pre-analysis plan for details

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
In order to avoid experimenter demand effects, we describe the study in fields that will not become public until after the experiment is over.
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
randomization done by a computer
Randomization Unit
vacancy × individual
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
300 individuals.

Only participants who complete the full study (all 42 ratings
and the post survey) enter the estimation sample; duplicate participations (the same person
completing more than once) are removed, keeping the first completion. Of these, we exclude (i)
participants who trigger the automated-agent trap embedded in the post survey (an instruction
invisible in normal use that only an automated agent would follow), (ii) participants whose total
completion time on the vacancy-rating pages is below the 3rd percentile, and (iii) participants
whose median time per vacancy exceeds the 98th percentile — (ii) and (iii) computed once on
the pooled final sample after applying (i).

Operationally, recruitment proceeds in waves and continues until
the number of completed, non-duplicate, trap-passing participants reaches 316 (≈ 300/0.95, using the two percentile-based exclusions), or until 31 July 2027, whichever comes first.
Sample size: planned number of observations
12,600 vacancy ratings =300 individuals * 42 vacancies
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
There are no separate treatment arms: no individual-level treatment is assigned. Vacancy attributes are randomized at the vacancy × individual level, generating variation both within individual (across the vacancies each rates) and across individual (for a given vacancy).
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Joint Ethics Committee of the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration of Goethe University Frankfurt and the Gutenberg School of Management & Economics of the Faculty of Law, Management and Economics of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
IRB Approval Date
2026-06-15
IRB Approval Number
N/A
Analysis Plan

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

Request Information