Partisanship and Blame Avoidance Behaviour

Last registered on June 23, 2023
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Partisanship and Blame Avoidance Behaviour
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0006835
Initial registration date
June 12, 2023

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
June 23, 2023, 3:59 PM EDT

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

Locations

Country
Norway
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Nanna Lauritz Schönhage
Affiliation
Vrije Universiteit Brussel
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

Additional Trial Information

Status
Completed
Start date
2020-11-01
End date
2021-02-28
Keywords
Behavior, Electoral
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
This study analyses how partisanship interacts with politicians' blame avoidance strategies in terms of excuses and justifications following the McGraw (1990; 1991) framework.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Schönhage, Nanna Lauritz. 2023. "Partisanship and Blame Avoidance Behaviour." AEA RCT Registry. June 23. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.6835-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Partisanship (in- vs. out-group) and blame avoidance behaviours (excuses and justifications).
Intervention Start Date
2020-11-01
Intervention End Date
2021-02-28

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Evaluation of vignette on 7-point Likert scale.
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
2x5 survey experiment.
Experimental Design Details
We survey two groups of respondents: a representative panel of the Norwegian public, as well as a panel of politicians. These are both subjected to an identical 2x5 survey experiment. Respondents are randomly assigned to one of 10 distinct treatment groups (between subject-design). The first source of experimental variation is at the partisan level based on respondents' previously stated partisan affiliations. The vignette frame describes a hypothetical scandal with the main character being an un-named politician in office, who is describes as either being in the respondent's own in- or out-party group (randomised). Here the in-group is the respondents' most preferred party. The our-group is their least preferred party.
The second source of variation is in the blame avoidance behaviour exhibited by the politician in the hypothetical vignette. This variation includes one blank (no blame avoidance behaviour) control group, two excuses and two justifications.
Randomization Method
Randomisation by computer.
Randomization Unit
Individual
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
1200
Sample size: planned number of observations
1200
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
120
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Ethische Commissie Humane Wetenschappen
IRB Approval Date
2020-11-24
IRB Approval Number
ECHW_226.02
Analysis Plan

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