Identifying Peer Effects Using Gold Rushers

John Lynham

No 2016-15, Working Papers from University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization, University of Hawaii at Manoa

Abstract: Fishers pay attention to where other fishers are fishing, suggesting the potential for peer effects. But peer effects are difficult to identify without an exogenous shifter of peer group membership. We propose an identification strategy that exploits a shifter of peer group membership: gold rushes of new entrants. Following an exchange-rate-induced gold rush in an American fishery, we find that new entrants are strongly influenced by the location choices of their peers. Over-identification tests suggest that the assumptions underlying identification hold when new entrants are inexperienced but identification is lost as new entrants start to potentially influence their peers.

Keywords: Peer Effects; Gold Rushes; Resource Extraction (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D8 J0 Q0 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 50 pages
Date: 2016-07
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-soc and nep-ure
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Related works:
Journal Article: Identifying Peer Effects Using Gold Rushers (2017)
Working Paper: Identifying Peer Effects Using Gold Rushers (2016)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hae:wpaper:2016-15

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