Back to Search
Start Over
Discrimination as favoritism: The private benefits and social costs of in-group favoritism in an experimental labor market
- Source :
- European Economic Review, European Economic Review, 2018, 104, pp.220-236. ⟨10.1016/j.euroecorev.2018.03.004⟩, European Economic Review, Elsevier, 2018, 104, pp.220-236. ⟨10.1016/j.euroecorev.2018.03.004⟩, European Economic Review, Elsevier, 2018, 104, pp.220-236. 〈10.1016/j.euroecorev.2018.03.004〉
- Publication Year :
- 2017
- Publisher :
- HAL CCSD, 2017.
-
Abstract
- International audience; In this paper, we examine labor market favoritism in a unique laboratory experiment design that can shed light on both the private benefits and spillover costs of employer favoritism (or discrimination). Group identity is induced on subjects such that each laboratory "society" consists of eight individuals each belonging to one of two different identity groups. In some treatments randomly assigned employer-subjects give preference rankings of potential worker-subjects who would make effort choices that impact employer payoffs. Though it is common knowledge that group identity in this environment provides no special productivity information and cannot facilitate communication or otherwise lower costs for the employer, employers preferentially rank in-group members. In such instances, the unemployed workers are aware that an intentional preference ranking resulted in their unemployment. Unemployed workers are allowed to destroy resources in a final stage of the game, which is a simple measure of the spillover effects of favoritism in our design. Though we find evidence that favoritism may privately benefit a firm in terms of higher worker effort, the spillover costs that result highlight a reason to combat favoritism/discrimination. This result also identifies one potential micro-foundation of societal unrest that may link back to labor market opportunity.
- Subjects :
- JEL: C - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods/C.C9 - Design of Experiments/C.C9.C92 - Laboratory, Group Behavior
History
Economics and Econometrics
Labour economics
Polymers and Plastics
Conflict
Experimental Economics
media_common.quotation_subject
Conflicts
Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering
JEL : C - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods/C.C9 - Design of Experiments/C.C9.C92 - Laboratory, Group Behavior
Spillover effect
Collective identity
Market analysis
0502 economics and business
Discrimination
Economics
[ SHS.ECO ] Humanities and Social Sciences/Economies and finances
In-group favoritism
JEL: J - Labor and Demographic Economics/J.J1 - Demographic Economics/J.J1.J15 - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants • Non-labor Discrimination
JEL: J - Labor and Demographic Economics/J.J1 - Demographic Economics/J.J1.J16 - Economics of Gender • Non-labor Discrimination
Business and International Management
050207 economics
Social identity theory
media_common
050208 finance
05 social sciences
Social identity
Experimental economics
[SHS.ECO]Humanities and Social Sciences/Economics and Finance
Preference
JEL: C - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods/C.C9 - Design of Experiments/C.C9.C90 - General
8. Economic growth
Unemployment
JEL : J - Labor and Demographic Economics/J.J1 - Demographic Economics/J.J1.J15 - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants • Non-labor Discrimination
050206 economic theory
JEL : J - Labor and Demographic Economics/J.J1 - Demographic Economics/J.J1.J16 - Economics of Gender • Non-labor Discrimination
Finance
JEL : C - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods/C.C9 - Design of Experiments/C.C9.C90 - General
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 00142921
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- European Economic Review, European Economic Review, 2018, 104, pp.220-236. ⟨10.1016/j.euroecorev.2018.03.004⟩, European Economic Review, Elsevier, 2018, 104, pp.220-236. ⟨10.1016/j.euroecorev.2018.03.004⟩, European Economic Review, Elsevier, 2018, 104, pp.220-236. 〈10.1016/j.euroecorev.2018.03.004〉
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....b06e87b1af0f80d4d3bef1f46827f434