eprintid: 27967
rev_number: 18
eprint_status: archive
userid: 3114
dir: disk0/00/02/79/67
datestamp: 2020-02-28 15:14:13
lastmod: 2020-03-03 14:19:21
status_changed: 2020-02-28 15:14:13
type: workingPaper
metadata_visibility: show
creators_name: Robert J., Schmidt
creators_name: Christiane, Schwieren
creators_name: Martin, Vollmann
title: The Value of Verbal Feedback in Allocation Decisions
subjects: ddc-330
divisions: i-181000
keywords: feedback, communication, non-instrumental information, social preferences, information avoidance, curiosity
abstract: Depending on the context at hand, people’s preference for receiving feedback might differ. Especially in allocation decisions that directly concern another individual, feedback from the affected person can have positive or negative value. We study such preferences in a laboratory experiment by eliciting the willingness-to-pay to receive or to avoid verbal feedback from subjects that were previously affected by an allocation decision. We find that most decision makers exhibit a positive willingness-to-pay for having control about whether feedback occurs or not. Specifically, decision makers that equally shared their endowment with the recipient revealed a positive willingness-to-pay for receiving, but not for avoiding feedback. By contrast, among decision makers that behaved selfishly, we identify both: subjects that were willing to pay for receiving and subjects that were willing to pay for avoiding feedback. The stated motivations indicate that curiosity, the desire to receive social approval and giving the recipient the chance to express his/her feelings are the main reasons for feedback acquisition, while shame and fear of negative feedback are the main reasons for avoidance.
date: 2020-02
id_scheme: DOI
id_number: 10.11588/heidok.00027967
schriftenreihe_cluster_id: sr-3
schriftenreihe_order: 0677
ppn_swb: 1691292583
own_urn: urn:nbn:de:bsz:16-heidok-279672
language: eng
bibsort: ROBERTJSCHTHEVALUEOF202002
full_text_status: public
series: Discussion Paper Series / University of Heidelberg, Department of Economics
volume: 0677
place_of_pub: Heidelberg
pages: 20
citation:   Robert J., Schmidt ; Christiane, Schwieren ; Martin, Vollmann  (2020) The Value of Verbal Feedback in Allocation Decisions.  [Working paper]     
document_url: https://archiv.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/volltextserver/27967/3/Schmidt_2020_dp677.pdf