# Experiment Text Breakdown This document contains all participant-facing text in both experiments. **Constants (both apps):** Group size = 5 (1 Leader + 4 Members), Endowment = 10 tokens, Multiplier = 1.8, Rounds = 10 --- # EXPERIMENT 1: Fixed Leader Payment (`public_goods_leader`) **Leader payment:** Fixed 20 tokens per round --- ## Page 1: Prolific ID (Welcome to the Study) > Thank you for participating in this research study, which will take about **10 minutes**. > Before we begin, please enter your Prolific ID below. This is required to ensure you receive payment for your participation. > **Your Payment:** > Upon completing the study, you will receive a **$2.5** participation payment. In addition, there is a 25% chance you will be randomly selected to receive a **bonus** from the study. If you are chosen for a bonus, then points received will be converted to dollars at a rate of *25 cents per point*. If selected, your bonus amount will be determined based on the procedures described later in the study and will be paid no later than December 24th. [Form: Prolific ID field] --- ## Page 2: No-Deception Policy > The experiment is conducted by researchers associated with the Interdisciplinary Experimental Laboratory (IELab) at Indiana University and follows **strict no deception policy**. > **In accordance with IELab rules, whatever we tell you is indeed true.** For example, if we tell you that something will happen if you choose a given option, then that thing will happen if you choose that option. Anything else would violate IELab policies. For more information on this policy, see *https://ie.lab.indiana.edu/conducting-experiments* --- ## Page 3: Welcome (Instructions) > You are participating in an economic decision-making study. > Your earnings in this study will depend on your decisions, on the decisions of others, and on chance. > All decisions are anonymous. You will not learn the identity of any of the other participants, and they will not learn yours. > You will now proceed to the instructions. Please read them carefully. > You will be required to complete a short comprehension quiz before beginning the experiment. --- ## Page 4: Group Assignment (Instructions 2) > You will be randomly and anonymously assigned to a group of **5** participants. > In each group, there are two types of participants: **1 Leader** and **4 Group Members**. > The assignment of roles is random. You will learn your role after reading the instructions. > All **5** participants in each group will receive the same instructions. --- ## Page 5: Payment Information (Instructions 3) > **At the end of the experiment:** > Tokens earned across all rounds will be converted into real money. > **1 token = ?** > **Your total payment equals:** > - Your earnings from all rounds > - Plus a guaranteed participation payment of **?** --- ## Page 6: Group Members (Instructions 4) > Each group member receives an endowment of **10** tokens. > Each group member must decide how many tokens to allocate to the **Group Account** and how many tokens to keep in their **Private Account**. > The number of tokens must be a whole number between **0 and 10**. > All decisions are made in private. --- ## Page 7: Accounts (Instructions 5) > **Group Account** > Tokens contributed to the Group Account are added together to form a total amount. This total is multiplied by **1.8** and then evenly split among all **4** group members. > **Private Account** > Each member keeps the tokens remaining in their Private Account after contributing to the Group Account. These tokens are **not multiplied**. --- ## Page 8: Leader (Instructions 6) > **Leader** > The leader's task is to send a recommendation at the start of each round, suggesting how many tokens each group member should contribute to the group account. > Group members are free to follow or ignore this recommendation. > The leader will not make a contributing decision to the group account and instead will receive a payment of half of the total contributed group account. > Leader payments do not come out of the group account. --- ## Page 9: Examples > The following examples illustrate how payoffs are calculated. ### Leader Payoffs > Regardless of how many tokens group members contribute to the Group Account, the Leader always receives **20 tokens**. ### Group Member Payoffs > **Example 1:** > You allocate 4 tokens and the other participants allocate 3, 5, and 8 tokens. > Total contribution: 4 + 3 + 5 + 8 = 20 tokens > 20 × 1.8 = 36 tokens, so each member receives 36 / 4 = 9 tokens > You keep 6 tokens, so your total payoff is: 6 + 9 = **15 tokens** > **Example 2:** > You allocate 10 tokens and the other participants allocate 0, 0, and 0 tokens. > Total contribution: 10 + 0 + 0 + 0 = 10 tokens > 10 × 1.8 = 18 tokens, so each member receives 18 / 4 = 4.5 tokens > You keep 0 tokens, so your total payoff is: 0 + 4.5 = **4.5 tokens** > **Example 3:** > You allocate 0 tokens and the other participants allocate 6, 6, and 6 tokens. > Total contribution: 0 + 6 + 6 + 6 = 18 tokens > 18 × 1.8 = 32.4 tokens, so each member receives 32.4 / 4 = 8.1 tokens > You keep 10 tokens, so your total payoff is: 10 + 8.1 = **18.1 tokens** --- ## Page 10: Comprehension Questions > Please answer the following comprehension questions. You will not be able to continue to the experiment until all answers are correct. The instructions are below the questions as a reminder. **Questions:** 1. Each token a group member contributes to the Group Account reduces their Private Account by how many tokens? - **Correct answer: 1** - Hint (after 2 wrong attempts): "Incorrect. Each contributed token reduces the private account by 1." 2. If all 4 group members contribute 10 tokens each, how many tokens does each member earn? - **Correct answer: 18** - Hint: "Incorrect. Multiply total contributions by 1.8 and divide equally." 3. If all group members contribute 10 tokens each to the Group Account: - a. Different group members would receive different earnings. - b. Each group member's earnings would be lower than if no one contributed. - **c. Each group member's earnings would be higher than if no one contributed.** ✓ - Hint: "Incorrect. Contributions increase earnings for everyone." 4. The leader's payoff in this experiment consists of: - **a. A fixed payment only.** ✓ - b. A fixed payment and a performance-based payment. - Hint: "Incorrect. The leader receives only a fixed payment." **Instructions repeated below the questions as a reminder:** - Group Assignment (same as Page 4) - Group Members (same as Page 6) - Accounts (same as Page 7) - Leader: "The leader sends a recommendation on how many tokens group members should contribute. Group members may follow or ignore this recommendation. The leader does not contribute and instead receives a **fixed payment of 20 tokens**. This payment does not depend on group contributions." - Payment (same as Page 5) *Note: First 2 wrong attempts show generic "Incorrect. Please try again." After 2 wrong attempts, specific hints are shown.* --- ## Page 11: Welcome to the Public Goods Game (Introduction) ### If Leader: > You are the **Leader** of your group. > Your role: > - You will send a message to motivate the 4 group members > - You will receive a fixed payment of **20 tokens** > - You do NOT receive a share of the group pot ### If Member: > You are a **Group Member**. > Your role: > - You have an endowment of **10 tokens** > - You will receive a message from your Leader > - You will decide how much to contribute to the group account (0 to 10 tokens) > - All contributions will be multiplied by **1.8** and redistributed equally among all 4 group members > - You keep any tokens you don't contribute, plus your share of the redistributed pot > **Ready to begin?** When you click the button below, you'll wait for all other participants to be ready. Once everyone is ready, the round will begin and timers will start. [Button: "I'm Ready to Start"] --- ## ROUND PAGES (repeat for rounds 1–10) Each round page shows: "Round X of 10" --- ### Round Start Wait Page > Please Wait > Waiting for all players to be ready... Timer text: "Time left for group members to join:" --- ### Leader Message (Leader only) > You have **2 minutes** to write a message to motivate your group members to contribute. > ⚠️ You must submit a message within this time. Otherwise, you will be removed from the experiment. [Form: Message text area] *If members have dropped out, a warning is shown:* > ⚠️ X group member(s) have left the game. Your group has been reduced from 4 to Y members. Timer text: "Time left for the leader to write their message:" --- ### Waiting for the Leader (Members only) > Please wait while the leader writes their message to the group... Timer text: "Time left for the leader to write their message:" --- ### Message from Leader and Your Contribution Decision (Members only) > **Message from your Leader:** *(leader's message displayed in a blue-bordered box)* > You have **10 tokens**. How much would you like to contribute to the group account? > Remember: All contributions will be multiplied by **1.8** and shared equally among the X active group members. [Form: Contribution (0–10), "✔ I'm still here" checkbox] *If leader has dropped out:* > ⚠️ Your leader has left the game. This was their last message: *If members have dropped out:* > ⚠️ X group member(s) have left the game. Your group has been reduced from 4 to Y members. Timer text: "Time left for group members to contribute:" --- ### Waiting for Contributions > Please wait while all group members submit their contributions... Timer text: "Time left for group members to contribute:" --- ### Results > **Group Results** > **Total group contribution:** X tokens (from Y active members) > **Multiplied pot:** Z > **Division:** Z ÷ Y active members = W per member **If Leader:** > As the Leader, you receive a fixed payment of **20 points**. **If Member:** > Share per member: W points > Your contribution: X tokens > Tokens kept: Y tokens > Your share of pot: W points > **Your total payoff: P** *If members have dropped out:* > ⚠️ X member(s) did not contribute (left the game). Your group was reduced from 4 to Y active members. *The multiplied pot is divided only among the Y active members.* Timer text: "Time left to view results (page will automatically continue to trust ratings):" --- ### Trust Ratings — Leader > Please rate your level of trust in the group members. > ⚠️ You have 2 minutes to complete this page. If you do not confirm that you are still here, you will be exited from the study. > On a scale from **0 (No trust at all)** to **10 (Complete trust)**: [Form: "How much do you trust the other Members in this group?" (0–10)] [Form: "✔ I'm still here"] --- ### Trust Ratings — Member > Please rate your level of trust in your group. > ⚠️ You have 2 minutes to complete this page. If you do not confirm that you are still here, you will be exited from the study. > On a scale from **0 (No trust at all)** to **10 (Complete trust)**: [Form: "How much do you trust the Leader in this group?" (0–10)] [Form: "How much do you trust the other Members in this group?" (0–10)] [Form: "✔ I'm still here"] *If leader dropped out:* > ⚠️ Your leader has left the game. The group has no leader now. *If members dropped out:* > ⚠️ X group member(s) left the game. Your group now has Y member(s) remaining. Timer text: "Time left for trust ratings to be submitted:" --- ### Trust Ratings Wait Page > Please wait while all group members submit their trust ratings... Timer text: "Time left for trust ratings to be submitted:" --- ## END OF EXPERIMENT PAGES --- ### Exit Notice (shown if player drops out or group ends early) **If dropout:** > **You have left this experiment.** > Your response was not completed in time, so your participation has ended for this study. > If this was not expected, please contact the researcher. **If group ended (too many dropouts):** > **This experiment has ended.** > Three group members have left the experiment, so the session cannot continue. > You will not continue to the next round. Both cases show: > Your completion code is: **CAHCFER6** > [Click Here to Complete on Prolific] → https://app.prolific.co/submissions/complete?cc=CAHCFER6 --- ### Completion (shown after round 10 for active players) > **Thank You!** > **Confirm Your Completion** > To receive payment on Prolific, please click the button below to confirm your completion. > Your completion code is: **CAHCFER6** > [Click Here to Complete on Prolific] → https://app.prolific.co/submissions/complete?cc=CAHCFER6 > If the button doesn't work, please copy and paste this URL into your browser: (URL shown) --- --- # EXPERIMENT 2: Variable Leader Payment (`public_goods_leader_variable`) **Leader payment:** 50% of total contributions (variable) **All pages are identical to Experiment 1 EXCEPT for the following differences:** --- ## Differences in Instructions 6 (Leader) *Same as Experiment 1 — both say:* > The leader will not make a contributing decision to the group account and instead will receive a payment of half of the total contributed group account. > Leader payments do not come out of the group account. --- ## Differences in Examples Page ### Leader Payoffs (Variable version) > The Leader receives half of the total contributions to the Group Account. This payment does not come out of the Group Account. > If total contributions = 20 tokens, the Leader receives 20 / 2 = **10 tokens**. *(Experiment 1 says: "the Leader always receives **20 tokens**")* Group member payoff examples are identical. --- ## Differences in Comprehension Questions Questions 1–3 are identical. **Question 4 differs:** **Experiment 1:** > 4. The leader's payoff in this experiment consists of: > - **a. A fixed payment only.** ✓ > - b. A fixed payment and a performance-based payment. > - Hint: "Incorrect. The leader receives only a fixed payment." **Experiment 2:** > 4. The leader's payoff in this experiment consists of: > - **a. 50% of total contributions.** ✓ > - b. 50% of the multiplied pot. > - c. A fixed payment only. > - Hint: "Incorrect. The leader receives 50% of total contributions." --- ## Differences in Comprehension Page — Leader Reminder Section **Experiment 1:** > The leader does not contribute and instead receives a **fixed payment of 20 tokens**. This payment does not depend on group contributions. **Experiment 2:** > The leader does not contribute and instead receives **50% of the total contributions**. Leader payments do not reduce group members' earnings. --- ## Differences in Introduction (Role Reveal) ### Leader intro: **Experiment 1:** > - You will receive a fixed payment of **20 tokens** > - You do NOT receive a share of the group pot **Experiment 2:** > - You will receive 50% of the total contributions made by the group members > - You do NOT receive a share of the group pot Member intro is identical in both experiments. --- ## Differences in Results Page ### Leader results line: **Experiment 1:** > As the Leader, you receive a fixed payment of **20 points**. **Experiment 2:** > As the Leader, you receive 50% of total contributions: **X points**. Member results are identical in both experiments. --- ## All Other Pages All other pages (ProlificID, No-Deception Policy, Welcome, Group Assignment, Payment Information, Group Members, Accounts, all wait pages, contribution page, trust ratings, exit notice, completion) are **identical** between the two experiments.