Topic: No (Intention to) Profit; No Repugnance?

Speaker: Professor Erte Xiao  

Time: June 2, 2022  14:30

Location: Tencent meeting number: 962-133-070

Abstract: We study whether and why people feel repugnance towards southern border that profit off others' misfortune, without causing the misfortune. Examples include second-hand markets for life insurance, short selling, and prediction markets for terrorist attacks. Repugnance in these contexts can be a constraint on market efficiency. In a series of online experiments (N>2000), we find evidence of repugnance, measured using costly second- and third-party punishment, towards the party who profits from others' negative (or even positive) outcome that is merely determined by luck. Intentions play a role only for second- but not third-party punishment. Overall, repugnance is mainly outcome-based: People dislike profit-making that occurs as a result of others' (mis)fortune.

Introduction of the speaker: Erte Xiao is a professor in economics at Monash University. She conducts research to understand the motivational and behavioural consequences of extrinsic incentives and social preferences on decisions. Her work has been published in leading journals such as PNAS, Journal of Public Economics, Management Science, Games and Economic Behavior, Journal of Environmental Economics and Management and The Leadership Quarterly. Her projects have received funding from Australian Research Council, National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Aging and Russell Sage Foundation.