Do the Right Thing:The E¤ects of Moral Suasion on Cooperation
نویسندگان
چکیده
The use of moral appeals to a¤ect the behavior of others is pervasive (from the pulpit to ethics classes) but little is known about the e¤ects of moral suasion on behavior. In a series of experiments we study whether moral suasion a¤ects behavior in voluntary contribution games and the mechanisms by which behavior is altered. We nd that observing a message with a moral standard according to the golden rule or, alternatively, utilitarian philosophy, results in a signi cant but transitory increase in contributions above the levels observed for subjects that did not receive a message or received a message that advised them to contribute without a moral rationale. When players have the option of punishing each other after the contribution stage, the e¤ect of the moral messages on contributions becomes persistent: punishments and moral messages interact to sustain cooperation. We also investigate the mechanisms through which moral suasion operates and nd it a¤ects both expectations and preferences. JEL codes: C9, H41. Keywords: moral suasion, morality, cooperation, public goods, ethics. For useful comments and suggestions we thank Alberto Alesina, Rachel Croson, Erik Eyster, Botond Koszegi, John Morgan, Santiago Oliveros, Parag Pathak, Louis Putterman, Matthew Rabin, Steve Tadelis, Dustin Tingley, as well as seminar and conference participants at Berkeley, FSU, Harvard/MIT, Brown, UCLA and Ecole Polytechnique. We thank Pantelis Solomon and Justin Tumlinson for research assistance as well as Berkeleys XLab for nancial and logistic support.
منابع مشابه
“Do the Right Thing:” The Effects of Moral Suasion on Cooperation
The use of moral appeals to affect the behavior of others is pervasive (from the pulpit to ethics classes) but little is known about the effects of moral suasion on behavior. In a series of experiments we study whether moral suasion affects behavior in voluntary contribution games and the mechanisms by which behavior is altered. We find that observing a message with a moral standard according t...
متن کاملThe Persistence of Moral Suasion and Economic Incentives: Field experimental evidence from energy demand
Firms and governments often use moral suasion and economic incentives to influence intrinsic and extrinsic motivations for various economic activities. To investigate the persistence of such interventions, we randomly assigned households to moral suasion and dynamic pricing that stimulate energy conservation during peak demand hours. Using household-level consumption data for 30-minute interval...
متن کاملOnline Appendix: Moral Suasion and Economic Incentives: Field Experimental Evidence from Energy Demand
متن کامل
Mulla Sadra on Virtue and Action
This paper sheds light on the views of Mulla Sadra about virtue and action. The main question is how he explains the relationship, if any, between virtue and action. Mulla Sadra defines moral virtue as a settled inner disposition by which one acts morally, without need for any reflection or deliberation. This study seeks to explain how, according to Mulla Sadra, a virtue motivates the agent and...
متن کامل