Back to History Current Version

An Experiment on Institutions and Theories of Property

Last registered on January 21, 2020
View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
An Experiment on Institutions and Theories of Property
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0005320
Initial registration date
January 18, 2020

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
January 21, 2020, 2:02 PM EST

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

Locations

Country
Benin
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Marco Fabbri
Affiliation
University Pompeu Fabra Barcelona
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Matteo Rizzolli
PI Affiliation
LUMSA University
Contact Investigator
PI Name
Giuseppe Dari-Mattiacci
PI Affiliation
Columbia University
Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2020-01-21
End date
2020-03-15
Keywords
Crime, Violence, & Conflict, Governance, Other, Welfare
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Abstract
Respecting others' property rights in situations where state enforcement or decentralized enforcing institutions are absent is an important component of social preferences. A burgeoning experimental literature has identified this unenforced respect for property rights and labelled it ``taking aversion" or ``first party enforcement" (Faillo et al., 2019). In this project, we investigate the effects that property rights have on taking aversion. More specifically, we study whether the source that originated the property rights (merit or luck) is an important determinant of taking aversion and how the origin of property interacts with property rights institutions. To do so, in a lab-in-the-field experiment we conduct a modified dictator game with taking in which the passive player had either received windfall money or earned the endowment through an effort task (Jakiela, 2011). To achieve identification, we combine the lab-in-the-field game with the setting of property rights reform implemented following a unique strategy in a West African country.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Dari-Mattiacci, Giuseppe, Marco Fabbri and Matteo Rizzolli. 2020. "An Experiment on Institutions and Theories of Property." AEA RCT Registry. January 21. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.5320-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
See attached pre-analysis plan
Intervention Start Date
2020-01-21
Intervention End Date
2020-03-15

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Taking rate of Dictators under different sources of earnings for the passive player. See attached pre-analysis plan.
Primary Outcomes (explanation)
See attached pre-analysis plan.

Secondary Outcomes

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

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
We ran a modified dictator game with taking combined with an implementation of a property rights reform. See attached pre-analysis plan.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
In office by computer
Randomization Unit
Village
Was the treatment clustered?
Yes

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
32
Sample size: planned number of observations
576
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
288
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
See attached pre-analysis plan
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Ethics Commitee - Parc de Salut MAR
IRB Approval Date
2018-04-11
IRB Approval Number
2018/8015/I
Analysis Plan

Analysis Plan Documents

An Experiment on Institutions and Theories of Property

MD5: 50a9e4e582f6a5d0d67beaada9811173

SHA1: 599982518a089b8a906cdf731d234e5aa38604c4

Uploaded At: January 18, 2020

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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

Request Information

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