Hierarchy, coercion, and exploitation: An experimental analysis

Nikos Nikiforakis (), Jörg Oechssler and Anwar Shah ()

Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 2014, vol. 97, issue C, 155-168

Abstract: The power to coerce workers is important for the efficient operation of hierarchically structured organizations. However, this power can also be used by managers to exploit their subordinates for their own benefit. We examine the relationship between the power to coerce and exploitation in a laboratory experiment where a senior and a junior player interact repeatedly for a finite number of periods. We find that senior players try repeatedly to use their power to exploit junior workers. These attempts are successful only when junior workers have incomplete information about how their effort impacts on the earnings of senior players, but not when they have complete information. Evidence from an incentive-compatible questionnaire indicates that the social acceptability of exploitation depends on whether the junior worker can detect she is being exploited. We also show how a history of exploitation affects future interactions.

Keywords: Coercion; Exploitation; Disobedience; Hierarchy; Social norms (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C72 C91 D74 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (19)

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167268113001601
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
Working Paper: Hierarchy, Coercion, and Exploitation: An Experimental Analysis (2014)
Working Paper: Hierarchy, coercion, and exploitation: An experimental analysis (2014)
Working Paper: Hierarchy, Coercion, and Exploitation: An Experimental Analysis (2012)
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jeborg:v:97:y:2014:i:c:p:155-168

DOI: 10.1016/j.jebo.2013.06.008

Access Statistics for this article

Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization is currently edited by Houser, D. and Puzzello, D.

More articles in Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().