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Market-based tournaments: An experimental investigation

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  • Dickmanns, Lisa
  • Gürtler, Marc
  • Gürtler, Oliver

Abstract

This paper examines “market-based tournaments”, in which firms use the tournament outcome to update their expectations about worker ability. A theoretical model offers several implications, which are unique to the market-based tournament and which we test in a laboratory experiment. The experiment supports most of the implications: We find that an increase in the variance of worker ability leads to a higher wage spread and that there is a non-monotonic relationship between this variance and effort. An increase in the marginal product of ability increases effort.

Suggested Citation

  • Dickmanns, Lisa & Gürtler, Marc & Gürtler, Oliver, 2018. "Market-based tournaments: An experimental investigation," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 294-306.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:labeco:v:51:y:2018:i:c:p:294-306
    DOI: 10.1016/j.labeco.2018.02.005
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    Cited by:

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Tournament; Promotion; Learning; Experiment;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C91 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Laboratory, Individual Behavior
    • D83 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Search; Learning; Information and Knowledge; Communication; Belief; Unawareness
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • M51 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Personnel Economics - - - Firm Employment Decisions; Promotions

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