Stephan Meier
Biographic Data
| ID | 3715215 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Stephan Meier |
| GIVEN NAMES | Stephan |
| FAMILY NAME | Meier |
| SIGNATURE | MEIER S |
| AFFILIATIONS | Columbia University |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-6726-9731 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 14 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 152 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 14 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2004 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2023 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
Macroeconomic Conditions When Young Shape Job Preferences for Life
Preferences for monetary and nonmonetary job attributes are important for understanding workers' motivation and the organization of work. Little is known, however, about how those job preferences are formed. We study how macroeconomic conditions when young shape workers' job preferences for life. Using variation in income-per-capita across U.S. regions and over time since the 1920s, we find that job preferences vary in systematic ways with experi…
Monetary incentives increase Covid-19 vaccinations
Valuing vaccination Using money as a motivation for the public to get vaccinated is controversial and has had mixed results in studies, few of which have been randomized trials. To test the effect of money as an incentive to obtain a vaccine, Campos-Mercade et al . set up a study in Sweden in 2021, when various age groups were first made eligible to receive the severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 vaccine (see the Perspective by Jecker). The ef…
Intentions for Doing Good Matter for Doing Well: The Negative Effects of Prosocial Incentives
Many firms consider prosocial initiatives to be an effective tool to motivate workers. However, despite some initial supportive evidence, little is known about when and how prosocial incentives work. Our field experiment shows that the instrumental use of prosocial incentives to increase effort can backfire. The negative effect is particularly strong for performance-based prosocial incentives, which are, by construction, more instrumental than un…
Saving more in groups: Field experimental evidence from Chile
Nonmonetary Incentives and the Implications of Work as a Source of Meaning
Empirical research in economics has begun to explore the idea that workers care about nonmonetary aspects of work. An increasing number of economic studies using survey and experimental methods have shown that nonmonetary incentives and nonpecuniary aspects of one's job have substantial impacts on job satisfaction, productivity, and labor supply. By drawing on this evidence and relating it to the literature in psychology, this paper argues that w…
Rank reversal aversion inhibits redistribution across societies
Poverty and Economic Decision-Making: Evidence from Changes in Financial Resources at Payday
We study the effect of financial resources on decision-making. Low-income US households are randomly assigned to receive an online survey before or after payday. The survey collects measures of cognitive function and administers risk and intertemporal choice tasks. The study design generates variation in cash, checking and savings balances, and expenditures. Before-payday participants behave as if they are more present-biased when making intertem…
Temporal Stability of Time Preferences
The preferences assumed to govern intertemporal trade-offs are generally considered to be stable economic primitives, though evidence on this stability is notably lacking. We present evidence from a large field study conducted over two years, with around 1,400 individuals using incentivized intertemporal choice experiments. Aggregate choice profiles and corresponding estimates of discount parameters are unchanged over the two years and individual…
When and Why Incentives (Don't) Work to Modify Behavior
First we discuss how extrinsic incentives may come into conflict with other motivations. For example, monetary incentives from principals may change how tasks are perceived by agents, with negative effects on behavior. In other cases, incentives might have the desired effects in the short term, but they still weaken intrinsic motivations. To put it in concrete terms, an incentive for a child to learn to read might achieve that goal in the short t…
Doing Good or Doing Well? Image Motivation and Monetary Incentives in Behaving Prosocially
This paper experimentally examines image motivation—the desire to be liked and well regarded by others—as a driver in prosocial behavior (doing good), and asks whether extrinsic monetary incentives (doing well) have a detrimental effect on prosocial behavior due to crowding out of image motivation. Using the unique property of image motivation—its dependency on visibility—we show that image is indeed an important part of the motivation to behave …
Do people behave in experiments as in the field?—evidence from donations
Laboratory experiments are an important methodology in economics, especially in the field of behavioral economics. However, it is still debated to what extent results from laboratory experiments are informative about behavior in field settings. One highly important question about the external validity of experiments is whether the same individuals act in experiments as they would in the field. This paper presents evidence on how individuals behav…
Is Volunteering Rewarding in Itself
Volunteering constitutes one of the most important pro‐social activities. Following Aristotle, helping others is the way to higher individual wellbeing. This view contrasts with the selfish utility maximizer, who avoids helping others. The two rival views are studied empirically. We find robust evidence that volunteers are more satisfied with their life than non‐volunteers. The issue of causality is studied from the basis of the collapse of East …
The Impact of Group Membership on Cooperation and Norm Enforcement: Evidence Using Random Assignment to Real Social Groups
The Impact of Group Membership on Cooperation and Norm Enforcement: Evidence Using Random Assignment to Real Social Groups by Lorenz Goette, David Huffman and Stephan Meier. Published in volume 96, issue 2, pages 212-216 of American Economic Review, May 2006
Social Comparisons and Pro-social Behavior: Testing “Conditional Cooperation” in a Field Experiment
Social Comparisons and Pro-social Behavior: Testing "Conditional Cooperation" in a Field Experiment by Bruno S. Frey and Stephan Meier. Published in volume 94, issue 5, pages 1717-1722 of American Economic Review, December 2004
When and Why Incentives (Don't) Work to Modify Behavior
First we discuss how extrinsic incentives may come into conflict with other motivations. For example, monetary incentives from principals may change how tasks are perceived by agents, with negative effects on behavior. In other cases, incentives might have the desired effects in the short term, but they still weaken intrinsic motivations. To put it in concrete terms, an incentive for a child to learn to read might achieve that goal in the short t…
Is Volunteering Rewarding in Itself
Volunteering constitutes one of the most important pro‐social activities. Following Aristotle, helping others is the way to higher individual wellbeing. This view contrasts with the selfish utility maximizer, who avoids helping others. The two rival views are studied empirically. We find robust evidence that volunteers are more satisfied with their life than non‐volunteers. The issue of causality is studied from the basis of the collapse of East …
Saving more in groups: Field experimental evidence from Chile
Nonmonetary Incentives and the Implications of Work as a Source of Meaning
Empirical research in economics has begun to explore the idea that workers care about nonmonetary aspects of work. An increasing number of economic studies using survey and experimental methods have shown that nonmonetary incentives and nonpecuniary aspects of one's job have substantial impacts on job satisfaction, productivity, and labor supply. By drawing on this evidence and relating it to the literature in psychology, this paper argues that w…
Rank reversal aversion inhibits redistribution across societies
Intentions for Doing Good Matter for Doing Well: The Negative Effects of Prosocial Incentives
Many firms consider prosocial initiatives to be an effective tool to motivate workers. However, despite some initial supportive evidence, little is known about when and how prosocial incentives work. Our field experiment shows that the instrumental use of prosocial incentives to increase effort can backfire. The negative effect is particularly strong for performance-based prosocial incentives, which are, by construction, more instrumental than un…
Social Comparisons and Pro-social Behavior: Testing “Conditional Cooperation” in a Field Experiment
Social Comparisons and Pro-social Behavior: Testing "Conditional Cooperation" in a Field Experiment by Bruno S. Frey and Stephan Meier. Published in volume 94, issue 5, pages 1717-1722 of American Economic Review, December 2004
The Impact of Group Membership on Cooperation and Norm Enforcement: Evidence Using Random Assignment to Real Social Groups
The Impact of Group Membership on Cooperation and Norm Enforcement: Evidence Using Random Assignment to Real Social Groups by Lorenz Goette, David Huffman and Stephan Meier. Published in volume 96, issue 2, pages 212-216 of American Economic Review, May 2006
Do people behave in experiments as in the field?—evidence from donations
Laboratory experiments are an important methodology in economics, especially in the field of behavioral economics. However, it is still debated to what extent results from laboratory experiments are informative about behavior in field settings. One highly important question about the external validity of experiments is whether the same individuals act in experiments as they would in the field. This paper presents evidence on how individuals behav…
Is Volunteering Rewarding in Itself
Volunteering constitutes one of the most important pro‐social activities. Following Aristotle, helping others is the way to higher individual wellbeing. This view contrasts with the selfish utility maximizer, who avoids helping others. The two rival views are studied empirically. We find robust evidence that volunteers are more satisfied with their life than non‐volunteers. The issue of causality is studied from the basis of the collapse of East …
Doing Good or Doing Well? Image Motivation and Monetary Incentives in Behaving Prosocially
This paper experimentally examines image motivation—the desire to be liked and well regarded by others—as a driver in prosocial behavior (doing good), and asks whether extrinsic monetary incentives (doing well) have a detrimental effect on prosocial behavior due to crowding out of image motivation. Using the unique property of image motivation—its dependency on visibility—we show that image is indeed an important part of the motivation to behave …
When and Why Incentives (Don't) Work to Modify Behavior
First we discuss how extrinsic incentives may come into conflict with other motivations. For example, monetary incentives from principals may change how tasks are perceived by agents, with negative effects on behavior. In other cases, incentives might have the desired effects in the short term, but they still weaken intrinsic motivations. To put it in concrete terms, an incentive for a child to learn to read might achieve that goal in the short t…
Temporal Stability of Time Preferences
The preferences assumed to govern intertemporal trade-offs are generally considered to be stable economic primitives, though evidence on this stability is notably lacking. We present evidence from a large field study conducted over two years, with around 1,400 individuals using incentivized intertemporal choice experiments. Aggregate choice profiles and corresponding estimates of discount parameters are unchanged over the two years and individual…
Poverty and Economic Decision-Making: Evidence from Changes in Financial Resources at Payday
We study the effect of financial resources on decision-making. Low-income US households are randomly assigned to receive an online survey before or after payday. The survey collects measures of cognitive function and administers risk and intertemporal choice tasks. The study design generates variation in cash, checking and savings balances, and expenditures. Before-payday participants behave as if they are more present-biased when making intertem…
Rank reversal aversion inhibits redistribution across societies
Saving more in groups: Field experimental evidence from Chile
Nonmonetary Incentives and the Implications of Work as a Source of Meaning
Empirical research in economics has begun to explore the idea that workers care about nonmonetary aspects of work. An increasing number of economic studies using survey and experimental methods have shown that nonmonetary incentives and nonpecuniary aspects of one's job have substantial impacts on job satisfaction, productivity, and labor supply. By drawing on this evidence and relating it to the literature in psychology, this paper argues that w…
Monetary incentives increase Covid-19 vaccinations
Valuing vaccination Using money as a motivation for the public to get vaccinated is controversial and has had mixed results in studies, few of which have been randomized trials. To test the effect of money as an incentive to obtain a vaccine, Campos-Mercade et al . set up a study in Sweden in 2021, when various age groups were first made eligible to receive the severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 vaccine (see the Perspective by Jecker). The ef…
Intentions for Doing Good Matter for Doing Well: The Negative Effects of Prosocial Incentives
Many firms consider prosocial initiatives to be an effective tool to motivate workers. However, despite some initial supportive evidence, little is known about when and how prosocial incentives work. Our field experiment shows that the instrumental use of prosocial incentives to increase effort can backfire. The negative effect is particularly strong for performance-based prosocial incentives, which are, by construction, more instrumental than un…
Macroeconomic Conditions When Young Shape Job Preferences for Life
Preferences for monetary and nonmonetary job attributes are important for understanding workers' motivation and the organization of work. Little is known, however, about how those job preferences are formed. We study how macroeconomic conditions when young shape workers' job preferences for life. Using variation in income-per-capita across U.S. regions and over time since the 1920s, we find that job preferences vary in systematic ways with experi…
Economics (13 works) · Psychology (10 works) · Experimental Behavioral Economics Studies (9 works) · Social Psychology (8 works) · Microeconomics (7 works) · Incentive (5 works) · Computer Science (4 works) · Mathematics (4 works) · Political science (4 works) · Sociology (4 works)