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Social Identity and Preferences

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Author Info
Daniel J. Benjamin
James J. Choi
A. Joshua Strickland

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Abstract

Social identities prescribe behaviors for people. We identify the marginal behavioral effect of these norms on discount rates and risk aversion by measuring how laboratory subjects’ choices change when an aspect of social identity is made salient. When we make ethnic identity salient to Asian-American subjects, they make more patient choices. When we make racial identity salient to black subjects, non-immigrant blacks (but not immigrant blacks) make more patient choices. Making gender identity salient has no effect on intertemporal or risk choices.

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Paper provided by National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc in its series NBER Working Papers with number 13309.

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Date of creation: Aug 2007
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Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:13309

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C91 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Laboratory, Individual Behavior
Z10 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - General

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Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. McLeish, Kendra N. & Oxoby, Robert J., 2008. "Social Interactions and the Salience of Social Identity," IZA Discussion Papers 3554, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
  2. Maria Knoth Humlum & Kristin J. Kleinjans & Helena Skyt Nielsen, 2007. "An Economic Analysis of Identity and Career Choice," IZA Discussion Papers 3120, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  3. Thomas S. Dee, 2009. "Stereotype Threat and the Student-Athlete," NBER Working Papers 14705, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Fernando Aguiar & Pablo Branas-Garza & Maria Paz Espinosa & Luis M. Miller, 2007. "Personal Identity in the Dictator Game," Jena Economic Research Papers in Economics 2007-007, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena, Max-Planck-Institute of Economics, Thueringer Universitaets- und Landesbibliothek. [Downloadable!]
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