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Are social preferences related to market performance?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 March 2025

Andreas Leibbrandt
Andreas Leibbrandt*
Affiliation:
Department of Economics, Monash University, Clayton 3800, Victoria, Australia
*
[email protected]
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Abstract

This paper combines laboratory with field data from professional sellers to study whether social preferences are related to performance in open-air markets. The data show that sellers who are more pro-social in a laboratory experiment are also more successful in natural markets: They achieve higher prices for similar quality, have superior trade relations and better abilities to signal trustworthiness to buyers. These findings suggest that social preferences play a significant role for outcomes in natural markets.

Keywords

Social preferencesMarket performanceExternal validityQuality misrepresentationOpen-air markets

JEL classification

D49: Other C91: Laboratory, Individual Behavior C93: Field Experiments
Type
Research Article
Information
Experimental Economics , Volume 15 , Issue 4 , December 2012 , pp. 589 - 603
Copyright
Copyright © 2012 Economic Science Association

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