Is it morally acceptable to be selfish?

Last registered on March 15, 2021
View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Is it morally acceptable to be selfish?
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0007357
Initial registration date
March 13, 2021

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 15, 2021, 10:53 AM EDT

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

Locations

Country
Denmark
Region
Country
Norway
Region
Country
Sweden
Region
Country
United States of America
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Ranveig Falch
Affiliation
Norwegian School of Economics
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Bertil Tungodden
PI Affiliation
Norwegian School of Economics
Contact Investigator
PI Name
Erik Ø. Sørensen
PI Affiliation
Norwegian School of Economics
Contact Investigator
PI Name
Alexander W. Cappelen
PI Affiliation
Norwegian School of Economics
Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status
On going
Start date
2020-07-15
End date
2024-03-13
Keywords
Behavior, Lab, Welfare
Additional Keywords
Selfishness, prosocial behavior, fairness, moral views
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Abstract
The present project studies the moral acceptability of selfish behavior, and how it varies both within a society and between societies.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Cappelen, Alexander W. et al. 2021. "Is it morally acceptable to be selfish?." AEA RCT Registry. March 15. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.7357-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Intervention Start Date
2020-07-15
Intervention End Date
2020-08-15

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
See attached pre-analysis plan for details.
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
See attached pre-analysis plan for details.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
Randomization done by data-collection agency by computer.
Randomization Unit
Individual
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
Treatment is not clustered. See planned number of observations below.
Sample size: planned number of observations
20,000 individuals
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
Around 10,000 individuals from the US and 10,000 individuals from Scandinavia.
For the main treatment 5,000 in treatment and 5,000 in control within each society.
See attached pre-analysis plan for more details.
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
NHH IRB
IRB Approval Date
2020-06-30
IRB Approval Number
NHH-IRB 13/20
Analysis Plan

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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