If I can do it, so can you! Peer effects on perseverance

Berno Buechel, Lydia Mechtenberg and Julia Petersen
Authors registered in the RePEc Author Service: Berno Büchel

Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 2018, vol. 155, issue C, 301-314

Abstract: Successful performance – be it in school, at the job, or in sports activities – requires perseverance, i.e., persistent work on a demanding task. We investigate in a controlled laboratory experiment how an individual's social environment affects perseverance. We find evidence for two kinds of peer effects: being observed by a peer can postpone the decision to give up, while observing a peer can be informative and have more sustainable effects. In particular, we show that successful peers affect perseverance positively if they communicate their success in a motivating way and negatively otherwise. Our experimental results suggest that peers affect perseverance indirectly, via influencing self-confidence.

Keywords: Perseverance; Peer effects; Experiment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C91 D90 J24 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (7)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jeborg:v:155:y:2018:i:c:p:301-314

DOI: 10.1016/j.jebo.2018.09.004

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