IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bpj/revmkt/v5y2007i1p32n4.html

Designing Experimental Auctions for Marketing Research: The Effect of Values, Distributions, and Mechanisms on Incentives for Truthful Bidding

Author

Listed:
  • Lusk Jayson L

    (Oklahoma State University, jayson.lusk@okstate.edu)

  • Alexander Corinne

    (Purdue University, cealexan@purdue.edu)

  • Rousu Matthew C.

    (Susquehanna University, rousu@susqu.edu)

Abstract

Accurately estimating consumer preferences for new products is an arduous task made difficult by the fact that individuals tend to exhibit a number of biases when answering hypothetical survey questions. Experimental auctions have advantages over conventional methods of estimating consumer preferences because they provide incentives for consumers to truthfully reveal their preferences. However, there is currently little information available to determine which mechanism to select among the class of incentive compatible mechanisms. In this paper, we provide insight into the theoretical properties of several incentive compatible value elicitation mechanisms including the Becker, DeGroot, Marschak (BDM) mechanism, Vickrey nth price auctions, and the random nth price auction. In particular, we draw attention to the shapes of the payoff functions and illustrate that the mechanisms differ with respect to the expected cost of deviating from truthful bidding. We show that incentives for truthful bidding depend on the distribution of competing bidders' values and/or prices and individuals' true values for a good. Our approach can be viewed as a diagnostic tool to aid in selecting between preference elicitation mechanisms.

Suggested Citation

  • Lusk Jayson L & Alexander Corinne & Rousu Matthew C., 2007. "Designing Experimental Auctions for Marketing Research: The Effect of Values, Distributions, and Mechanisms on Incentives for Truthful Bidding," Review of Marketing Science, De Gruyter, vol. 5(1), pages 1-32, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:bpj:revmkt:v:5:y:2007:i:1:p:32:n:4
    DOI: 10.2202/1546-5616.1059
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.2202/1546-5616.1059
    Download Restriction: For access to full text, subscription to the journal or payment for the individual article is required.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.2202/1546-5616.1059?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version below or

    for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Dragicevic, Arnaud Z. & Ettinger, David, 2011. "Private Valuation of a Public Good in Three Auction Mechanisms," Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 2(2), pages 1-29, April.
    2. repec:ken:wpaper:0602 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Ji Yong Lee & Rodolfo M. Nayga & Cary Deck & Andreas C. Drichoutis, 2020. "Cognitive Ability and Bidding Behavior in Second Price Auctions: An Experimental Study," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 102(5), pages 1494-1510, October.
    4. Chavez, Daniel & Palma, Marco, 2015. "Off the reservation: Pushing the bounds of rationality in experimental auctions," 2015 AAEA & WAEA Joint Annual Meeting, July 26-28, San Francisco, California 202164, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    5. repec:dau:papers:123456789/6445 is not listed on IDEAS
    6. Sebastian Lehmann, 2014. "Toward an Understanding of the BDM: Predictive Validity, Gambling Effects, and Risk Attitude," FEMM Working Papers 150001, Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg, Faculty of Economics and Management.
    7. Jay R. Corrigan & Andreas C. Drichoutis & Jayson L. Lusk & Rodolfo M. Nayga & Matthew C. Rousu, 2012. "Repeated Rounds with Price Feedback in Experimental Auction Valuation: An Adversarial Collaboration," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 94(1), pages 97-115.
    8. Ellison, Brenna & Kirwan, Barrett & Nepal, Atul, "undated". "Consumers' Willingness to Pay for Bioplastic Plant Containers: An Experimental Auction Approach," 2015 AAEA & WAEA Joint Annual Meeting, July 26-28, San Francisco, California 205670, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    9. Palma, Marco A. & Ness, Meghan L. & Anderson, David P., 2015. "Buying More than Taste? A Latent Class Analysis of Health and Prestige Determinants of Healthy Food," 2015 Conference (59th), February 10-13, 2015, Rotorua, New Zealand 202566, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society.
    10. Kimenju, Simon Chege & De Groote, Hugo & Morawetz, Ulrich B., 2006. "Comparing Accuracy and Costs of Revealed and Stated Preferences: The Case of Consumer Acceptance of Yellow Maize in East Africa," 2006 Annual Meeting, August 12-18, 2006, Queensland, Australia 25642, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    11. Borrello, M. & Cecchini, L. & Vecchio, R. & Caracciolo, F. & Cembalo, L. & Torquati, B., 2022. "Agricultural landscape certification as a market-driven tool to reward the provisioning of cultural ecosystem services," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 193(C).
    12. Bensch, Gunther & Grimm, Michael, 2024. "Behavioural constraints in energy technology uptake: Evidence from real-purchase offers in rural Rwanda and Senegal," Ruhr Economic Papers 1081, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    13. Kilwinger, Fleur B.M. & Spielman, David J. & Almekinders, Conny J.M. & Rajendran, Srinivasulu & van Dam, Ynte K., 2025. "Beyond the bids: Lessons from farmers' reflections on Vickrey auctions of sweetpotato vines in Rwanda," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 229(C).
    14. Ji Yong Lee & Doo Bong Han & Rodolfo M. Nayga Jr & Song Soo Lim, 2011. "Valuing traceability of imported beef in Korea: an experimental auction approach," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 55(3), pages 360-373, July.
    15. Dinah Pura T. Depositario & Rodolfo M. Nayga Jr & Yu Yvette Zhang & Robert Dominick E. Mariano, 2014. "Revisiting Cash Endowment and House Money Effects in an Experimental Auction of a Novel Agri-food Product in the Philippines," Asian Economic Journal, East Asian Economic Association, vol. 28(2), pages 201-215, June.
    16. Palma, Marco & Ness, Meghan & Anderson, David, 2015. "Prestige as a Determining Factor of Food Purchases," 2015 Annual Meeting, January 31-February 3, 2015, Atlanta, Georgia 196694, Southern Agricultural Economics Association.
    17. Azucena GRACIA & Tiziana DE-MAGISTRIS, 2015. "The role of participants' competitiveness in consumers' valuation for food products using experimental auctions," Agricultural Economics, Czech Academy of Agricultural Sciences, vol. 61(10), pages 484-491.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bpj:revmkt:v:5:y:2007:i:1:p:32:n:4. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Peter Golla (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.degruyterbrill.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.