{% extends "global/Page.html" %} {% load staticfiles otree %} {% block title %} Instructions {% endblock %} {% block content %}
1. Introduction and set-up
This is an experiment about decision-making. Please read the following instructions carefully. Everything you need in order to participate is explained below. If you have any questions, please raise your hand. Someone will come to your desk to help you.

You start the experiment with a show-up fee of £ 3. During the experiment, you can earn additional payoffs in Tokens. The conversion rate is:

2 Tokens = £ 1

The experiment consists of {{ Constants.num_rounds }} decision rounds.

In each round, you are matched into a group of 3 participants: one LIGHT BLUE player, one DARK BLUE player, and one GREEN player.

Your player type remains the same throughout the experiment (that is, you will always be either GREEN, LIGHT BLUE, or DARK BLUE across all rounds).

However, groups are re-matched across rounds. This implies that the group composition will not remain the same throughout the decision rounds.

Participants’ identities are never revealed. Communication between participants is not allowed.
2. The BLUE players
In each round, both BLUE players have to choose an effort level. Higher effort is associated with a higher cost.

You can find a sheet on your desk called “EFFORT CHOICE AND ITS COST FOR BLUE PLAYERS”. This sheet shows numbers from 0 to 100 in the first column. These are your potential effort choices. Associated with each effort number are the costs of choosing that effort level, as shown in the effort table. All BLUE players have the same effort cost table, regardless of their subtype.

After choosing effort, each BLUE player generates an individual random number between -30 and +30. The random number is independent across BLUE players. The random number is independent across rounds as well.

The sum of effort and the random number is the BLUE player’s performance.

In addition, each BLUE subtype has a fixed project-specific number:
  • LIGHT BLUE player   :  50
  • DARK BLUE player  :  10
Work output combines performance and the project-specific number.
Work output BLUE players:
Work output  =  (1 − α) · Performance
Player’s effort +
player’s random number
 +  α · Specific Project
The weight is the same for both BLUE players and is known to everyone:

α = 0.4

60% of work output comes from performance and 40% from the project-specific number.

The BLUE player's payoff in a round is:
payment assigned by GREEN − cost of effort
Your total compensation will be the show-up fee plus your payoff from each round. Note that your payoff in a given round may be negative. However, if you wish, you can avoid negative round payoffs through your own decisions. In any case, your final payment for the experiment cannot be lower than the show-up fee. You will be paid in cash at the end of the experiment.

The GREEN player must allocate a high payment and a low payment to the BLUE players. The low fixed payment is 0.5 Tokens. The high fixed payment is 4.5 Tokens.

The GREEN player does this by choosing an allocation rule that depends on the total work outputs of each BLUE player. The GREEN player is free to choose the allocation rule. More details about the decision of the GREEN player are found in the next section of the instructions.

Player GREEN has an incentive to allocate the higher payment to the BLUE player with the higher effort (that is: the number chosen by the LIGHT BLUE and the DARK BLUE player, independent of the random number and the specific project number). However, the other BLUE player’s effort and your own effort are not revealed to the GREEN player. More details about the decision of the GREEN player are found in the next section of the instructions.
3. The GREEN player and the rule slider
In each round, the GREEN player chooses a rule that allocates a high payment and a low payment to the two BLUE players. The low payment is 0.5 Tokens and the high payment is 4.5 Tokens.

The rule is based on the difference in work outputs between the BLUE players.

The GREEN player is free to choose any rule, but earns 1.5 Tokens if the high payment ends up being assigned to the BLUE player with the higher effort. In case both BLUE players chose the same effort, The GREEN player also receives a payoff of 1.50 tokens. Otherwise, The GREEN player earns 0 Tokens.
The GREEN player will not be informed about the effort chosen by each of the two BLUE players. Also will not observe the individually generated random number of the two BLUE players. The GREEN only observes the work outputs for each of the BLUE players at the end of each round.


Difference in work output = LIGHT BLUE output − DARK BLUE output
You can move the slider up and down to determine how the high payment is allocated. This is an interactive demo only. It does not affect your payoffs.
100
80
60
40
20
0
-20
-40
-60
-80
-100
0
LIGHT BLUE wins
DARK BLUE wins
Move up/down
How to interpret the examples:

Threshold 0: the high payment goes to the player with the higher work output.
Threshold +30: LIGHT BLUE gets the high payment only if its work output is at least 30 points higher than DARK BLUE's work output.
Threshold -20: LIGHT BLUE still gets the high payment as long as its work output is not more than 20 points lower than DARK BLUE's work output.
4. End of a round and continuing rounds
After each round:

  • BLUE players are told the other BLUE player’s work output and whether they received the low or high payment.
  • The GREEN players are told whether they correctly assigned the high payment to the BLUE player with the higher effort, and they observe both BLUE players’ work outputs.

In the next round, the same procedures are repeated. BLUE players again choose effort and generate a new random number, and GREEN players again choose a new allocation rule.
5. Before you continue
Please make sure you understand the instructions above.

You will now answer two pages of control questions. You must pass the control questions to proceed to the experiment.

On the following pages, you will also have the possibility to consult the instructions again if you have any doubts.
{% endblock %}