Does media coverage influence public attitudes towards welfare recipients? The impact of the 2011 English riots

Following the shooting of Mark Duggan by police on 4 August 2011, there were riots in many large cities in the UK. As the rioting was widely perceived to be perpetrated by the urban poor, links were quickly made with Britain's welfare policies. In this paper, we examine whether the riots, and the subsequent media coverage, influenced attitudes toward welfare recipients. Using the British Social Attitudes survey, we use multivariate difference‐in‐differences regression models to compare attitudes toward welfare recipients among those interviewed before (pre‐intervention: i.e. prior to 6 August) and after (post‐intervention: 10 August–10 September) the riots occurred (N = 3,311). We use variation in exposure to the media coverage to test theories of media persuasion in the context of attitudes toward welfare recipients. Before the riots, there were no significant differences between newspaper readers and non‐readers in their attitudes towards welfare recipients. However, after the riots, attitudes diverged. Newspaper readers became more likely than non‐readers to believe that those on welfare did not really deserve help, that the unemployed could find a job if they wanted to and that those on the dole were being dishonest in claiming benefits. Although the divergence was clearest between right‐leaning newspaper and non‐newspaper readers, we do not a find statistically significant difference between right‐ and left‐leaning newspapers. These results suggest that media coverage of the riots influenced attitudes towards welfare recipients; specifically, newspaper coverage of the riots increased the likelihood that readers of the print media expressed negative attitudes towards welfare recipients when compared with the rest of the population.     

Not all computerized cheating tasks are equal: A comparison of computerized and non-computerized versions of a cheating task

Computerized versions of population inferred cheating tasks (C-PICT)—i.e., tasks in which dishonesty is statistically determined on the aggregate by comparing self-reported outcomes with a known probability distribution—have become increasingly popular. To this date no study has investigated whether non-computerized population inferred cheating tasks (PICT) and C-PICT as well as different implementations of C-PICT produce similar results. The current study tackles both issues via a well-powered pre-registered online experiment (N = 3,645) with four conditions. Participants played either a non-computerized coin toss task (CTT) (C1) or one of three computerized CTT: a computerized CTT provided via an external website (C2), a computerized CTT provided within the survey framework of the study in which participants were explicitly informed that the actual outcome of the CTT was not monitored (C3), or a computerized CTT provided within the survey framework of the study in which participants were explicitly informed that the actual outcome of the CTT was monitored (C4). A priori we expected the probability of dishonesty to be higher in C1 compared to C2, C3, and C4, as well as lower in C4 compared to C3 and C2. Results show that the probability of dishonesty is higher in C1 and C2 compared to C3 and C4. Conversely, no significant difference was observed between C1 and C2, nor between C3 and C4. Taken together, our results indicate that C-PICT produce results similar to PICT when they are provided via an external website, but not when they are implemented within the survey framework of the study.     

Understanding Mechanisms Underlying Peer Effects: Evidence From a Field Experiment on Financial Decisions

Using a high‐stakes field experiment conducted with a financial brokerage, we implement a novel design to separately identify two channels of social influence in financial decisions, both widely studied theoretically. When someone purchases an asset, his peers may also want to purchase it, both because they learn from his choice (“social learning”) and because his possession of the asset directly affects others' utility of owning the same asset (“social utility”). We randomize whether one member of a peer pair who chose to purchase an asset has that choice implemented, thus randomizing his ability to possess the asset. Then, we randomize whether the second member of the pair: (i) receives no information about the first member, or (ii) is informed of the first member's desire to purchase the asset and the result of the randomization that determined possession. This allows us to estimate the effects of learning plus possession, and learning alone, relative to a (no information) control group. We find that both social learning and social utility channels have statistically and economically significant effects on investment decisions. Evidence from a follow‐up survey reveals that social learning effects are greatest when the first (second) investor is financially sophisticated (financially unsophisticated); investors report updating their beliefs about asset quality after learning about their peer's revealed preference; and, they report motivations consistent with “keeping up with the Joneses” when learning about their peer's possession of the asset. These results can help shed light on the mechanisms underlying herding behavior in financial markets and peer effects in consumption and investment decisions.     

公平感对供应链成员定价决策影响的研究

本文研究公平感对由一个供应商和一个零售商组成的二级供应链中的定价决策的影响,其中供应商决定批发价格,零售商在接受供应商批发价格合同之后决定零售价格,市场需求受到零售价格的线性影响.采用管理实验方法得出,首先,供应商的批发价格和零售商的零售价格均分别低于完全理性假设下的均衡解;供应商是利他性的,即,乐于看到零售商收益的增加,并且,供应商认为零售商是完全理性的,即零售商的决策目标是最大化自身收益;然而,零售商却是刻毒性的,即乐于看到供应商收益的减少.其次,批发价格的变异度大于零售价格的,即供应商决策的难度大于零售商的.给管理者的启示是:供应商应考虑零售商的刻毒性的特征,降低批发价格,以提高零售商接受供应商所提批发价格的概率;此外,还应该为供应商提供辅助决策手段,以降低批发价格的变异度,提高决策的准确性     

不同供需关系下的食品安全与政府监管策略分析

供需物流不平衡是引发食品安全的问题的一个重要因素,本文从最基本的物流平衡出发,构建一个从原材料供应到消费者最终消费完整过程的食品风险传播模型,采用计算实验方法探讨不同供需关系对食品安全以及供应链成员策略选择的影响。研究发现,不同的供需关系会导致不同的食品安全情况,供需关系越紧张,食品安全事故发生的可能性越大,从物流平衡的角度解释了一些食品安全事故发生的必然性。在供需极度失衡的情况下,政府监管能在一定程度上控制有害物质的恶性传播,但不能从根本上保证食品的安全。政府监管策略方面,与静态的监管策略相比,弹性、动态的监管策略能更有效的控制食品安全。此外,物流供需关系、监管策略对食品供应链的上游影响较大,对下游影响相对较小。     

Media Disaster Reporting Effects on Public Risk Perception and Response to Escalating Tornado Warnings: A Natural Experiment

Previous research has evaluated public risk perception and response to a natural hazards in various settings; however, most of these studies were conducted either with a single scenario or after a natural disaster struck. To better understand the dynamic relationships among affect, risk perception, and behavioral intentions related to natural disasters, the current study implements a simulation scenario with escalating weather intensity, and includes a natural experiment allowing comparison of public response before and after a severe tornado event with extensive coverage by the national media. The current study also manipulated the display of warning information, and investigated whether the warning system display format influences public response. Results indicate that (1) affect, risk perception, and behavioral intention escalated as weather conditions deteriorated, (2) responses at previous stages predicted responses at subsequent stages of storm progression, and (3) negative affect predicted risk perception. Moreover, risk perception and behavioral intention were heightened after exposure to the media coverage of an actual tornado disaster. However, the display format manipulation did not influence behavioral responses. The current study provides insight regarding public perception of predisaster warnings and the influence of exposure to media coverage of an actual disaster event.     

Behavior in Multi‐Unit Demand Auctions: Experiments with Uniform Price and Dynamic Vickrey Auctions

We experimentally investigate the sensitivity of bidders demanding multiple units of a homogeneous commodity to the demand reduction incentives inherent in uniform price auctions. There is substantial demand reduction in both sealed bid and ascending price clock auctions with feedback regarding rivals' drop‐out prices. Although both auctions have the same normal form representation, bidding is much closer to equilibrium in the ascending price auctions. We explore the behavioral process underlying these differences along with dynamic Vickrey auctions designed to eliminate the inefficiencies resulting from demand reduction in the uniform price auctions.     

企业家认知资源与管理创新决策:理论与案例实验

本文旨在探讨企业家认知资源的异质性及其对管理创新决策的影响。运用案例实验法进行了实证检验,研究结果表明:企业家的经验和社会资本是企业家的异质性认知资源,引致了企业家和非企业家管理决策方案在创新性和适用性上的异质性;在没有社会资本的支持下,企业家经验与管理决策方案创新性之间呈倒U型关系,对方案的适用性有正向影响;而在社会资本可得的情况下,企业家经验与社会资本均对方案的创新性和适用性有显著的增强效应。     

一类污水处理项目的运营与排污者行为动态分析

本文针对污水处理项目运营风险高、企业偷排行为控制难问题,首先依据排污信息和排污价格的波动与否,构建了4种计算实验情景;然后针对各种情景分别设计了污水处理价格形成机制、居民和企业社会属性与行为的变化规则,分析了经济压力、社会影响以及政府监管对排污价格形成、排污者行为变化的影响;最后运用计算实验方法模拟了污水处理项目运营与排污者行为在4种情景下的动态变化。结果表明:合理的静态定价策略要优于运营商动态定价策略;动态外部环境既给污水处理项目的运营带来风险,又给政府对企业的监管带来不便;单纯的市场价格机制或政府监管机制很难有效控制偷排现象,也不一定能实现居民的节水减排,企业和运营商的逐利行为可能会使得目标落空。     

Tactical coordination in a multi-location and multi-stage operations structure: A model and a pharmaceutical company case

In this paper, we look at the internal supply chain of an internationally operating firm characterized by a multi-location and multi-stage operations structure. We address problems at three levels, namely the strategic, tactical, and operational levels. Our approach goes beyond the operational literature, and focuses primarily on the tactical level. We specify a model and a case that capture strategic and tactical issues and relate the tactical issues to organizational issues. We simulate coordination in different organizational forms pertaining to the ‘tactical control’ of the firm. Our analysis suggests that a functionally organized multi-location and multi-stage operations structure using traditional planning will not work. The choice is between a strongly IT-based, centralized organization or a more decentralized organization using transfer prices as the coordination device.