Who deserves redistribution?

Last registered on May 19, 2021
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Who deserves redistribution?
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0007690
Initial registration date
May 19, 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
May 19, 2021, 10:54 AM EDT

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

Locations

Country
Italy
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Daniela Grieco
Affiliation
Università degli Studi di Milano
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Cristina Cattaneo
PI Affiliation
RFF‐CMCC European Institute on Economics and the Environment (EIEE), Centro Euro‐Mediterraneo sui Cambiamenti Climatici
Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status
On going
Start date
2021-05-19
End date
2021-06-30
Keywords
Behavior, Welfare
Additional Keywords
redistribution, cooperation, merit
JEL code(s)
C71; D63; H23
Secondary IDs
Abstract
We study whether and how people’s willingness to redistribute is affected by the desire to reward recipients’ previous virtuous behavior, namely the sacrifice of own interest for the community’s sake. We explore the role of recipients’ cooperative levels in making them “deserving” redistribution. An additional objective of the analysis is to study the correlation between own cooperative behavior and redistribution levels.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Cattaneo, Cristina and Daniela Grieco. 2021. "Who deserves redistribution?." AEA RCT Registry. May 19. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.7690-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
We collect information on real redistributive choices and provide subjects with information on recipients’ behavior in a binary Public Goods Game.
Intervention (Hidden)
Intervention Start Date
2021-05-19
Intervention End Date
2021-06-30

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Redistribution choices
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
Our experimental protocol combines the infrastructure of an online “labor market” to recruit Workers and that of the international survey company to recruit Spectators. First, we recruit Workers on a online labor market. In Phase 1, Workers take part into a binary Public Goods Game. In Phase 2, Workers conduct a real-effort work task made of four assignments (a scrambling task, two math tasks, and a code recognition task). We measure their performance in all the four tasks and randomly match them in pairs.
The Spectators are asked to choose the amount of the redistribution between the two workers in each pair in different conditions, where we vary the information provided regarding the Workers’ behavior in the Public Goods Game.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
Randomization done by the company that administers the survey.
Randomization Unit
Individual. We present the control condition, where no information is given about Workers' behavior in the Public Goods Game, as first, given that it only presents a limited information set. The other four conditions, that add information about the Workers' behavior (both Workers decided to cooperate; no Worker decided to cooperate; only the most productive decided to to cooperate; only the less productive decided to cooperate), will be presented in a random order. To check any anchoring effect to the responses in the control condition, a sub-set of Spectators will not receive the control condition.
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
1000 subjects
Sample size: planned number of observations
1000 subjects
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
All 1000 subjects receive the four conditions in a randomized order ("within-subject design").
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Comitato Etico, Università degli Studi di Milano
IRB Approval Date
2021-02-16
IRB Approval Number
15/21
Analysis Plan

Analysis Plan Documents

Pre Analysis Plan

MD5: 7b983deaa1cf1ded35eb2e2dedad036c

SHA1: 51e33eac3378ba5e14a68eec0f5b258810594f52

Uploaded At: May 19, 2021

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