Distributional preferences and competitive behavior

Loukas Balafoutas, Rudolf Kerschbamer and Matthias Sutter

Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 2012, vol. 83, issue 1, 125-135

Abstract: We study experimentally the relationship between distributional preferences and competitive behavior. We find that spiteful subjects react strongest to competitive pressure and win in a tournament significantly more often than efficiency-minded and inequality averse subjects. However, when given the choice between a tournament and a piece rate scheme, efficiency-minded subjects choose the tournament most often, while spiteful and inequality averse subjects avoid it. When controlling for distributional preferences, risk attitudes and past performance, the gender gap in the willingness to compete is no longer significant, indicating that gender-related variables explain why twice as many men as women self-select into competition.

Keywords: Competition; Distributional preferences; Gender gap (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C91 D03 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2012
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (138)

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Working Paper: Distributional Preferences and Competitive Behavior (2011)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jeborg:v:83:y:2012:i:1:p:125-135

DOI: 10.1016/j.jebo.2011.06.018

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