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Strategic Thinking in Contests

Author

Listed:
  • David Bruner
  • Caleb Cox
  • David M. McEvoy
  • Brock Stoddard

Abstract

We examine motives for over-bidding in contests using both individual and team contests. In team contests, subject pairs send suggested bids and messages to their teammates. Content analysis of the messages provides insight into an individual’s bidding motives. In addition, we elicit measures of preferences, beliefs, and impulsiveness. We ?nd that beliefs about others’ bids and messages that emphasize winning (i.e., utility of winning) are the most robust predictors of over-bidding. Our results suggest that analyzing communication provides a rich window into an individual’s thought process when making decisions, and can complement insights from elicited values from common decision tasks. Key Words: Tullock contest, lottery contest, winner-take-all, two-headed contest, team contest, strategic thinking, communication, overbidding

Suggested Citation

  • David Bruner & Caleb Cox & David M. McEvoy & Brock Stoddard, 2019. "Strategic Thinking in Contests," Working Papers 19-08, Department of Economics, Appalachian State University.
    • Handle: RePEc:apl:wpaper:19-08
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    tullock contest; lottery contest; winner-take-all; two-headed contest; team contest; strategic thinking; communication; overbidding;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C92 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Laboratory, Group Behavior

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