Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement in Economics: Supply-Side Responses to Discrimination

经济学博士论文研究的改进：供给方对歧视的反应

• 批准号: 2117463
• 负责人: James Andreoni
• 金额: $ 2.5万
• 依托单位: University of California-San Diego
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2021-08-15 至 2024-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2117463&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Doctoral; Dissertation; Research; Improvement; Economics

This award is funded in whole or in part under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-2).This project will investigate how people respond to actual and anticipated discrimination. Literature on discrimination in economics has primarily focused on evaluating whether and how employers discriminate against employees. Substantially less research has investigated how employees respond to discrimination, and whether they may actively avoid situations in which they anticipate being discriminated against. These responses may be important drivers of the underrepresentation of women in male-dominated high paying jobs. In the first set of projects, the authors will conduct a series of laboratory experiments in which subjects face choices over working in different environments. These environments differ based on whether they have rules that discriminate against certain groups of subjects. By eliciting subjects’ preferences over these environments, the researchers will evaluate whether subjects are willing to give up money to avoid facing discrimination. In the second set of projects, the researchers will investigate people’s beliefs about potential signals of discrimination in the labor market and how these beliefs affect their choices. Together, these projects will provide insight into the role that beliefs about and responses to discrimination may play in the persistence of wage gaps in the labor market.In this project, the researchers will investigate the role that discrimination anticipation plays in the labor market, and how providing information about signals of discrimination affects workers' choices and beliefs. The emphasis for much of the economics literature on discrimination has been placed on the role of the employer. Theoretical papers have shown that supply-side (employee) perceptions of discrimination may play a crucial role in the persistence and exacerbation of group-level wage gaps (Coate and Loury, 1993; Lang et al, 2005). Yet, empirical research on the relevance and role of discrimination anticipation among employees is limited. In this project, the researchers will conduct a series of experiments to examine the role of supply-side anticipation of discrimination in the labor market. In the first study, the researchers will run a laboratory experiment to test whether individuals are averse to discriminatory environments. That is, are subjects willing to forego profits in order to avoid facing discrimination? Literature on fairness suggests that individuals may be averse to discriminatory rules, but this theory has not been directly tested. Evidence of discrimination aversion would provide theoretical insight into mechanisms leading to wage gaps, which may be masked as preferences. In the second study, the researchers will run an information experiment to investigate beliefs about a signal of potential discrimination in the labor market and to analyze how people respond to information about this signal. Together, these studies have the potential to provide a more holistic view of the theoretical and empirical role of discrimination, through supply-side anticipation of discrimination.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

该奖项是根据2021年《美国救援计划法》的全部或部分资助的（公共法117-2）。该项目将调查人们如何应对实际和预期的歧视。关于经济学歧视的文献主要集中于评估员工是否以及如何歧视员工。研究大大减少了研究员工对歧视的反应，以及他们是否可以主动避免在这些回应中的情况可能是女性在男性主导的高薪工作中代表性不足的重要驱动力。在第一组项目中，作者将进行一系列实验室实验，其中受试者面临在不同环境中工作的选择。这些环境根据它们是否具有歧视某些受试者群体的规则而不同。通过引起对象对这些环境的偏好，研究人员将评估受试者是否愿意放弃钱来避免面对歧视。在第二组项目中，研究人员将调查人们对劳动力市场歧视潜在信号的信念以及这些信念如何影响他们的选择。这些项目将共同洞悉对劳动力市场中工资差距的持续存在的信念和对歧视的作用。在该项目中，研究人员将调查歧视预期在劳动力市场中扮演的角色，以及提供有关歧视信号的信息如何影响工人的选择和信仰。许多经济学文献的重点都放在员工的角色上。理论论文表明，对歧视的供应方（员工）看法可能在群体级工资差距的持久性和加剧中起着至关重要的作用（Coate和Loury，1993; Lang等，2005）。然而，关于员工歧视预期的相关性和作用的实证研究是有限的。在该项目中，研究人员将进行一系列实验，以研究供应方面歧视在劳动力市场中的作用。在第一项研究中，研究人员将运行实验室实验，以测试个人是否反对歧视性环境。也就是说，为了避免面对歧视而愿意放弃利润的受试者吗？关于公平性的文献表明，个人可能反对歧视性规则，但是该理论尚未直接检验。歧视厌恶的证据将提供对导致工资差距的机制的理论见解，这可能被掩盖为偏好。在第二项研究中，研究人员将运行一个信息实验，以调查劳动力市场潜在歧视的信号，并分析人们如何响应有关此信号的信息。这些研究共同通过供应方面的预期来提供对歧视的理论和经验作用的更全面的看法。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为是通过基金会的智力优点和更广泛的影响审查标准来评估来获得珍贵的支持。