Optimal contracts based on subjective evaluations and reciprocity

Alexander Sebald () and Markus Walzl

Working Papers from Faculty of Economics and Statistics, Universität Innsbruck

Abstract: s demonstrated in a recent laboratory experiment [see Sebald and Walzl (2014)], individuals tend to sanction others who subjectively evaluate their performance when-ever this assessment falls short of the individuals' self-evaluation. Interestingly, this is the case even if the individuals' earnings are unaffected by the subjective performance appraisal. Hence, performance feedback which falls short of agents' self-evaluations can be interpreted as an unkind act that triggers a negatively reciprocal response not only if the assessment determines agents' earnings but also when it lacks monetary consequences. We propose a principal-agent model formalizing that agents might engage into conflict in response to ego-threatening performance appraisals and show that these conflicts stabilize principal-agent relationships based on subjective performance evaluations. In particular, we identify conditions for a positive welfare effect of increasing costs of conflict and a negative welfare effect of more capable agents.

Keywords: Contracts; Subjective Evaluations; Self-Esteem; Ego-Threats; Reciprocity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D01 D02 D82 D86 J41 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 50
Date: 2012-08, Revised 2014-11
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cta, nep-exp and nep-mic
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:inn:wpaper:2012-16

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