Attribution bias in major decisions: Evidence from the United States Military Academy

Kareem Haggag, Richard W. Patterson, Nolan Pope and Aaron Feudo

Journal of Public Economics, 2021, vol. 200, issue C

Abstract: Using administrative data, we study the role of attribution bias in a high-stakes, consequential decision: the choice of a college major. Specifically, we examine the influence of fatigue experienced during exposure to a general education course on whether students choose the major corresponding to that course. To do so, we exploit the conditional random assignment of student course schedules at the United States Military Academy. We find that students who are assigned to an early morning (7:30 AM) section of a general education course are roughly 10% less likely to major in that subject, relative to students assigned to a later time slot for the course. We find similar effects for fatigue generated by having one or more back-to-back courses immediately prior to a general education course that starts later in the day. Finally, we demonstrate that the pattern of results is consistent with attribution bias and difficult to reconcile with competing explanations.

Keywords: Attribution bias; Misattribution; College major choice; I23; D90; D91 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D90 D91 I23 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (11)

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Related works:
Working Paper: Attribution Bias in Major Decisions: Evidence from the United States Military Academy (2019)
Working Paper: Attribution Bias in Major Decisions: Evidence from the United States Military Academy (2018)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:pubeco:v:200:y:2021:i:c:s0047272721000815

DOI: 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2021.104445

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