Piercing the "Payoff Function" Veil: Tracing Beliefs and Motives

Guidon Fenig, Giovanni Gallipoli () and Yoram Halevy

Working Papers from University of Toronto, Department of Economics

Abstract: This paper develops an experimental methodology that allows the identification of decision-making processes in interactive settings using tracking of non-choice data. This non-intrusive and indirect approach provides essential information for the characterization of beliefs. The analysis reveals significant heterogeneity, which is reduced to two broad types, differentiated by the importance of pecuniary rewards in agents' payoff function. Most subjects maximize monetary rewards by best responding to beliefs shaped by recent history. Others are able to identify profit-maximizing actions but choose to systematically deviate from them. The interaction among different types is key to understanding aggregate outcomes.

Keywords: non-choice data; typology; tracking; response-time; coordination; public goods; complementarity; altruism; joy of giving; competitiveness; joy of winning; laboratory experiment. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C72 C9 C92 D9 H41 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: Unknown pages
Date: 2018-11-26
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-gth
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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https://www.economics.utoronto.ca/public/workingPapers/tecipa-625.pdf Main Text (application/pdf)

Related works:
Working Paper: Piercing the “Payoff Function” Veil: Tracing Beliefs and Motives (2023)
Working Paper: Piercing the 'Payoff Function' Veil: Tracing Beliefs and Motives (2018)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:tor:tecipa:tecipa-625

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