22 research outputs found
Trustorsâ disregard for trustees deciding quickly or slowly in three experiments with time constraints
Many decisions in the economic and social domain are made under time constraints, be it under
time pressure or forced delay. Requiring individuals to decide quickly or slowly often elicit different
responses. Time pressure has been associated with inefficiency in market settings and market
regulation often requires individuals to delay their decisions via cooling-off periods. Yet, recent
research suggests that people who make reflective decisions are met with distrust. If this extends to
external time constraints, then forcing individuals to delay their decisions may be counterproductive
in scenarios where trust considerations are important, such as in market and organizational design. In
three Trust Game experiments (total number of participants = 1872), including within- and betweensubjects
designs, we test whether individuals trust (more) someone who is forced to respond quickly
(intuitively) or slowly (reflectively). We find that trustors do not adjust their behavior (or their beliefs)
to the trusteeâs time conditions. This seems to be an appropriate response because time constraints
do not affect trusteesâ behavior, at least when the game decisions are binary (trust vs. donât trust;
reciprocate vs. donât reciprocate) and therefore mistakes cannot explain choices. Thus, delayed
decisions per se do not seem to elicit distrust.European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program-Marie Sklodowska Curie Individual Fellowship 891124European Commission 754446UGR Research and Knowledge Transfer Fund-Athenea3iES
Paid and hypothetical time preferences are the same: Lab, field and online evidence
The use of hypothetical instead of real decision-making incentives remains under debate after
decades of economic experiments. Standard incentivized experiments involve substantial
monetary costs due to participantsâ earnings and often logistic costs as well. In time
preferences experiments, which involve future payments, real payments are particularly
problematic. Since immediate rewards frequently have lower transaction costs than
delayed rewards in experimental tasks, among other issues, (quasi)hyperbolic functional
forms cannot be accurately estimated. What if hypothetical payments provide accurate data
which, moreover, avoid transaction cost problems? In this paper, we test whether the use
of hypothetical - versus real - payments affects the elicitation of short-term and long-term
discounting in a standard multiple price list task. One-out-of-ten participants probabilistic
payment schemes are also considered. We analyze data from three studies: a lab experiment
in Spain, a well-powered field experiment in Nigeria, and an online extension focused on
probabilistic payments. Our results indicate that paid and hypothetical time preferences are
mostly the same and, therefore, that hypothetical rewards are a good alternative to real
rewards. However, our data suggest that probabilistic payments are not.Spanish Government PGC2018-093506-B-I00
PGC2018-098186-B-I00
PID2021-126892NB-I00Junta de Andalucia PY18-FR-0007Comunidad de MadridCAVTIONS-CM-UC3M (Comunidad de Madrid/Universidad Carlos III de Madrid)Athenea3i - Marie Skodowska-Curie (European Union's Horizon 2020/Universidad de Granada) 75444
Accepting zero in the ultimatum game does not reflect selfish preferences
First Version (âAccepting Zero in the Ulti
matum Game: Selfish Nash Response?â):
January 2013.The study shows that subjects who set their minimum acceptable offer equal to zero in an ultimatum game (UG) are the most generous dictators in a dictator game. The finding implies that interpreting indiscriminately the acceptance of low UG offers as payoff maximization can be misleading and suggests that altruism and/or the desire to maximize welfare are to a large extent behind
Patience predicts cooperative synergy: the roles of ingroup bias and reciprocity
Patienceâlow delay discountingâhas been shown to predict cooperative behavior in environments where cooperation conflicts with competitive aspirations. Indeed, impatience seems to be associated to a greater concern for the latter (i.e., for the individualâs relative standing). But what about intergroup-competition situations, where competitive sentiments against outgroups can trigger ingroup cooperation? We analyze the connection between delay discounting and performance in two problem-solving tasks with either individual or intergroup-competition incentives. We find a positive relationship between the mean patience of the members of a group (both when using long-term discounting and short-term discounting, also known as present bias) and the within-group cooperative synergy during intergroup competition. Further exploratory analyses based on a follow-up social preferences task suggest that, for long-term discounting, this result may be explained by patient (vs. impatient) individualsâ propensity to be initially cooperative and to subsequently treat group members based on reciprocal fairness instead of strict equality. For short-term discounting, or present bias, our exploratory analyses do not yield any significant result, meaning that we are unable to provide a social-preferences-based explanation to the higher synergy observed in groups with less present biased individuals
Exposure to the COVID-19 pandemic environment and generosity
Financial support from MINECO-FEDER (PGC2018-093506-B-I00, PID2019-106146GB-I00 and PID2019-108718GB-I00), Excelencia-Andalucia (PY18-FR-0007), the Basque government (IT1336-19), the University of Granada (B-SEJ-280-UGR20) and GACR (17-25222S) is gratefully acknowledged. Antonio Espin acknowledges funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under the Marie SklodowskaCurie grant agreement no. 754446 and UGR Research and Knowledge Transfer Fund - Athenea3i.We report data from an online experiment which allows us
to study how generosity changed over a 6-day period during
the initial explosive growth of the COVID-19 pandemic
in Andalusia, Spain, while the country was under a strict
lockdown. Participants (n = 969) could donate a fraction of a
âŹ100 prize to an unknown charity. Our data are particularly
rich in the age distribution and we complement them with
daily public information about COVID-19-related deaths,
infections and hospital admissions. We find correlational
evidence that donations decreased in the period under
study, particularly among older individuals. Our analysis of
the mechanisms behind the detected decrease in generosity
suggests that expectations about othersâ behaviour, perceived
mortality risk and (alarming) information play a keyâbut
independentârole for behavioural adaptation. These results
indicate that social behaviour is quickly adjusted in response
to the pandemic environment, possibly reflecting some form
of selective prosociality.Spanish Government PGC2018-093506-B-I00
PID2019-106146GB-I00
PID2019-108718GB-I00Basque Government IT1336-19University of Granada B-SEJ-280-UGR20Grant Agency of the Czech Republic 17-25222SEuropean Commission 754446UGR Research and Knowledge Transfer Fund - Athenea3iExcelencia-Andalucia PY18-FR-000
Culture and group-functional punishment behaviour
Funding. Financial support from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (PGC2018-093506-B-I00, ECO2013-44879-R)
and theRegionalGovernment ofAndalusia (PY18-FR-0007, P11-SEJ-8286 and P12-SEJ-1436) is gratefully acknowledged.Antonio
EspĂn acknowledges funding from the European Unionâs Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie
SkĆodowska-Curie grant agreement no. 754446 and UGR Research and Knowledge Transfer Fund â Athenea3i. Funding for
open access charge: Universidad de Granada.Data availability statement. The dataset and code (STATA) are available at: http://hdl.handle.net/10481/76057Supplementary material. To view supplementary material for this article, please visit https://doi.org/10.1017/ehs.2022.32Humans often âaltruisticallyâ punish non-cooperators in one-shot interactions among genetically unrelated
individuals. This poses an evolutionary puzzle because altruistic punishment enforces cooperation norms
that benefit the whole group but is costly for the punisher. One key explanation is that punishment follows
a social-benefits logic: it is eminently normative and group-functional (drawing on cultural group selection
theories). In contrast, mismatch-based deterrence theory argues that punishment serves the individual-
level function of deterring mistreatment of oneself and oneâs allies, hinging upon the evolved human
coalitional psychology. We conducted multilateral-cooperation experiments with a sample of Spanish
Romani people (Gitanos or Calé) and the non-Gitano majority. The Gitanos represent a unique case
study because they rely heavily on close kin-based networks and display a strong ethnic identity. We
find that Gitano non-cooperators were not punished by co-ethnics in only-Gitano (ethnically) homogeneous
groups but were harshly punished by other Gitanos and by non-Gitanos in ethnically mixed groups.
Our findings suggest the existence of culture-specific motives for punishment: Gitanos, especially males,
appear to use punishment to protect their ethnic identity, whereas non-Gitanos use punishment to protect
a norm of universal cooperation. Only theories that consider normative, group-functional forces underlying
punishment behaviour can explain our data.Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (PGC2018-093506-B-I00, ECO2013-44879-R)Regional Government ofAndalusia (PY18-FR-0007, P11-SEJ-8286 and P12-SEJ-1436)European Unionâs Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie SkĆodowska-Curie grant agreement no. 754446UGR Research and Knowledge Transfer Fund â Athenea3iFunding for open access charge: Universidad de Granad
The separate effects of self-estimated and actual alcohol intoxication on risk-taking: a field experiment
Firstâ© Versionâ©(âAlcoholâ© Consumption â©and â©Risk â©Attitudeâ):â© October â©2008.Many risky actions are carried out under the influence of alcohol. However, the effect of alcoholic intoxication over the willingness to take risks is complex and still remains unclear. We conduct an economic field experiment in a natural, drinking and risk-taking environment to analyze how both actual and self-estimated blood alcohol concentration (BAC) levels influence subjectsâ choices over monetary lotteries. Our results reveal a negative impact of both actual and self-estimated BAC levels on risk-taking. However, for male and young subjects, we find a positive relationship between BAC underestimation (a pattern of estimation error which mainly occurs at high BAC levels) and the willingness to choose riskier lotteries. Our findings suggest that a risk compensation mechanism is activated only when individualsâ own intoxication level is consciously self-perceived to be high. We conclude therefore that human propensity to engage in risky activities under the influence of alcohol is not due to an enhanced preference for risky choices. In addition to the suggestion in the existing literature that such propensity is due to a weakened ability to perceive risks, our results indicate that an impaired self-perception of own intoxication level may also be an important factor.Financialâ© support â©from â©the â©Spanish â©Ministryâ© of â©Scienceâ© and Innovation (SEJ2010â17049/ECON),â© theâ© Regionalâ© Programs
SEJâ02547,â© SEJâ340â© andâ© SEJâ023â© ofâ© theâ© Regionalâ©
Government â©of â©Andalusiaâ©
Role of age and comorbidities in mortality of patients with infective endocarditis
[Purpose]: The aim of this study was to analyse the characteristics of patients with IE in three groups of age and to assess the ability of age and the Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) to predict mortality.
[Methods]: Prospective cohort study of all patients with IE included in the GAMES Spanish database between 2008 and 2015.Patients were stratified into three age groups:<65âŻyears,65 to 80âŻyears,andâŻâ„âŻ80âŻyears.The area under the receiver-operating characteristic (AUROC) curve was calculated to quantify the diagnostic accuracy of the CCI to predict mortality risk.
[Results]: A total of 3120 patients with IE (1327âŻ<âŻ65âŻyears;1291 65-80âŻyears;502âŻâ„âŻ80âŻyears) were enrolled.Fever and heart failure were the most common presentations of IE, with no differences among age groups.Patients â„80âŻyears who underwent surgery were significantly lower compared with other age groups (14.3%,65âŻyears; 20.5%,65-79âŻyears; 31.3%,â„80âŻyears). In-hospital mortality was lower in the <65-year group (20.3%,<65âŻyears;30.1%,65-79âŻyears;34.7%,â„80âŻyears;pâŻ<âŻ0.001) as well as 1-year mortality (3.2%, <65âŻyears; 5.5%, 65-80âŻyears;7.6%,â„80âŻyears; pâŻ=âŻ0.003).Independent predictors of mortality were ageâŻâ„âŻ80âŻyears (hazard ratio [HR]:2.78;95% confidence interval [CI]:2.32â3.34), CCIâŻâ„âŻ3 (HR:1.62; 95% CI:1.39â1.88),and non-performed surgery (HR:1.64;95% CI:11.16â1.58).When the three age groups were compared,the AUROC curve for CCI was significantly larger for patients aged <65âŻyears(pâŻ<âŻ0.001) for both in-hospital and 1-year mortality.
[Conclusion]: There were no differences in the clinical presentation of IE between the groups. AgeâŻâ„âŻ80âŻyears, high comorbidity (measured by CCI),and non-performance of surgery were independent predictors of mortality in patients with IE.CCI could help to identify those patients with IE and surgical indication who present a lower risk of in-hospital and 1-year mortality after surgery, especially in the <65-year group
Treatment with tocilizumab or corticosteroids for COVID-19 patients with hyperinflammatory state: a multicentre cohort study (SAM-COVID-19)
Objectives: The objective of this study was to estimate the association between tocilizumab or corticosteroids and the risk of intubation or death in patients with coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) with a hyperinflammatory state according to clinical and laboratory parameters.
Methods: A cohort study was performed in 60 Spanish hospitals including 778 patients with COVID-19 and clinical and laboratory data indicative of a hyperinflammatory state. Treatment was mainly with tocilizumab, an intermediate-high dose of corticosteroids (IHDC), a pulse dose of corticosteroids (PDC), combination therapy, or no treatment. Primary outcome was intubation or death; follow-up was 21 days. Propensity score-adjusted estimations using Cox regression (logistic regression if needed) were calculated. Propensity scores were used as confounders, matching variables and for the inverse probability of treatment weights (IPTWs).
Results: In all, 88, 117, 78 and 151 patients treated with tocilizumab, IHDC, PDC, and combination therapy, respectively, were compared with 344 untreated patients. The primary endpoint occurred in 10 (11.4%), 27 (23.1%), 12 (15.4%), 40 (25.6%) and 69 (21.1%), respectively. The IPTW-based hazard ratios (odds ratio for combination therapy) for the primary endpoint were 0.32 (95%CI 0.22-0.47; p < 0.001) for tocilizumab, 0.82 (0.71-1.30; p 0.82) for IHDC, 0.61 (0.43-0.86; p 0.006) for PDC, and 1.17 (0.86-1.58; p 0.30) for combination therapy. Other applications of the propensity score provided similar results, but were not significant for PDC. Tocilizumab was also associated with lower hazard of death alone in IPTW analysis (0.07; 0.02-0.17; p < 0.001).
Conclusions: Tocilizumab might be useful in COVID-19 patients with a hyperinflammatory state and should be prioritized for randomized trials in this situatio
Illustrations on cooperative, competitive and temporal choices
Tesis Univ. Granada. Departamento de TeorĂa e Historia EconĂłmic