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The Effect of Purpose on Worker Sorting
Last registered on April 06, 2017
View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information
General Information
Title
The Effect of Purpose on Worker Sorting
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0002150
Initial registration date
April 05, 2017
Last updated
April 06, 2017 12:38 PM EDT
Location(s)
Country
Philippines
Region
Country
United States of America
Region
Boston
Primary Investigator
Name
Hyunjin Kim
Affiliation
Harvard University
Contact Primary Investigator
Other Primary Investigator(s)
Additional Trial Information
Status
In development
Start date
2017-04-03
End date
2017-05-31
Keywords
Labor
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Abstract
We explore how commitment to a corporate purpose affects job applications to the firm.
External Link(s)
Registration Citation
Citation
Kim, Hyunjin. 2017. "The Effect of Purpose on Worker Sorting." AEA RCT Registry. April 06. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.2150-1.0.
Former Citation
Kim, Hyunjin. 2017. "The Effect of Purpose on Worker Sorting." AEA RCT Registry. April 06. http://www.socialscienceregistry.org/trials/2150/history/15927.
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details
Interventions
Intervention(s)
The interventions will vary messages about what the purpose of the company is to potential and hired workers.
Intervention Start Date
2017-04-03
Intervention End Date
2017-04-06
Primary Outcomes
Primary Outcomes (end points)
The number of applications and the wage specified in application
Primary Outcomes (explanation)
Secondary Outcomes
Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)
Experimental Design
Experimental Design
The experimental design randomizes individuals into 12 cells that vary statements on the purpose of the company.
Experimental Design Details
The experiment has a 2x3x2 experimental design.

On a labor market platform, I will vary whether or not a statement of purpose for a company is expressed. In the control, the company will not have any statement of purpose and simply describe the job. The “purpose" condition, the company will provide a statement of purpose on providing environmentally sustainable goods.

Within each of these companies, I will vary two types of treatment arms. The first arm varies the combination of cheap talk and costly signal of the belief in purpose that is given to workers. Workers will be randomly assigned to one of three conditions: (1) no costly signal (representing cheap talk; no statement in the case of the control company); (2) a lump sum donation to a related charity; (3) an incremental donation to a related charity based on the worker’s effort.

The second treatment arm type will vary the type of wage structure that is offered, either offering an hourly wage or an incentive scheme with bonus pay. These arms will allow me to benchmark any effects of cheap talk or costly signal that I find to a standard practice of incentive pay. Furthermore, the interactions between the wage structure and the type of purpose will enable to me explore any complementarities in management practices and company beliefs of purpose.

The experiment will create 12 job postings with these variations in messages and examine who applies to the company, and will collect outcomes prior to the job task, recording the number of job applications and the wage specified in the application.
Randomization Method
Randomization is done in office by a computer.
Randomization Unit
Individual
Was the treatment clustered?
No
Experiment Characteristics
Sample size: planned number of clusters
7,200 workers
Sample size: planned number of observations
7,200 workers for the sorting experiment
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
600 workers by treatment arm
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB
INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW BOARDS (IRBs)
IRB Name
Harvard IRB
IRB Approval Date
2017-01-27
IRB Approval Number
IRB17-0094
Analysis Plan
Post-Trial
Post Trial Information
Study Withdrawal
Intervention
Is the intervention completed?
No
Is 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