Yamit Asulin, Yuval Heller, Nira Munichor, Ro’i Zultan.

Abstract

This field experiment investigates the impact of social image concerns on prosocial behavior and explores how this impact varies with social distance. The study involved 670 high-school students who were asked to generate donations for a community project by walking, with their efforts either unobserved or observed by a friend or a random participant (acquaintance). Extrinsic incentives in the form of predetermined personal bonus thresholds were offered alongside the public-good provision to identify social image concerns. The results indicate that being observed by others made people behave more generously. Participants donated more and walked further when they knew someone was observing them compared to when they were anonymous. Additionally, the identity of the observer greatly affected the chances of participants reaching the predetermined personal bonus threshold. Friends increased the odds by five times, while acquaintances increased the odds by twelve times.

Keywords: Intrinsic Incentives, Extrinsic Incentives, Field Experiment, Social Image Concerns, Social Distance, Signaling Theory, Reputations, Volunteer, Pro-social behavior

JEL classification: H41, C93, D64