Effectiveness of ex ante honesty oaths in reducing dishonesty depends on content

IF 21.4 1区 心理学 Q1 MULTIDISCIPLINARY SCIENCES
Janis H. Zickfeld, Karolina A. Ścigała, Christian T. Elbæk, John Michael, Mathilde H. Tønnesen, Gabriel Levy, Shahar Ayal, Isabel Thielmann, Laila Nockur, Eyal Peer, Valerio Capraro, Rachel Barkan, Simen Bø, Štěpán Bahník, Daniele Nosenzo, Ralph Hertwig, Nina Mazar, Alexa Weiss, Ann-Kathrin Koessler, Ronit Montal-Rosenberg, Sebastian Hafenbrädl, Yngwie Asbjørn Nielsen, Patricia Kanngiesser, Simon Schindler, Philipp Gerlach, Nils Köbis, Nicolas Jacquemet, Marek Vranka, Dan Ariely, Jareef Bin Martuza, Yuval Feldman, Michał Białek, Jan K. Woike, Zoe Rahwan, Alicia Seidl, Eileen Chou, Agne Kajackaite, Simeon Schudy, Ulrich Glogowsky, Anna Z. Czarna, Stefan Pfattheicher, Panagiotis Mitkidis
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Abstract

Dishonest behaviours such as tax evasion impose significant societal costs. Ex ante honesty oaths—commitments to honesty before action—have been proposed as interventions to counteract dishonest behaviour, but the heterogeneity in findings across operationalizations calls their effectiveness into question. We tested 21 honesty oaths (including a baseline oath)—proposed, evaluated and selected by 44 expert researchers—and a no-oath condition in a megastudy involving 21,506 UK and US participants from Prolific.com who played an incentivized tax evasion game online. Of the 21 interventions, 10 significantly improved tax compliance by 4.5 to 8.5 percentage points, with the most successful nearly halving tax evasion. Limited evidence for moderators was found. Experts and laypeople failed to predict the most effective interventions, though experts’ predictions were more accurate. In conclusion, honesty oaths were effective in curbing dishonesty, but their effectiveness varied depending on content. These findings can help design impactful interventions to curb dishonesty.

Abstract Image

事前诚信宣誓能否有效减少不诚信行为取决于宣誓内容
逃税等不诚实行为造成了巨大的社会成本。事前诚信宣誓--行动前的诚信承诺--已被提出作为抵制不诚实行为的干预措施,但不同操作方法的研究结果存在差异,这使其有效性受到质疑。在一项大型研究中,我们测试了 21 项诚信誓言(包括一项基准誓言)--由 44 位专家研究人员提出、评估和选择,以及一项无誓言条件。这项研究涉及来自 Prolific.com 的 21506 名英国和美国参与者,他们在网上玩了一个受激励的逃税游戏。在 21 项干预措施中,有 10 项显著提高了纳税遵从度 4.5 到 8.5 个百分点,其中最成功的干预措施几乎将逃税率减半。关于调节因素的证据有限。专家和非专业人士未能预测出最有效的干预措施,但专家的预测更为准确。总之,诚信宣誓能有效遏制不诚信行为,但其效果因内容而异。这些发现有助于设计有影响力的干预措施来遏制不诚实行为。
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来源期刊
Nature Human Behaviour
Nature Human Behaviour Psychology-Social Psychology
CiteScore
36.80
自引率
1.00%
发文量
227
期刊介绍: Nature Human Behaviour is a journal that focuses on publishing research of outstanding significance into any aspect of human behavior.The research can cover various areas such as psychological, biological, and social bases of human behavior.It also includes the study of origins, development, and disorders related to human behavior.The primary aim of the journal is to increase the visibility of research in the field and enhance its societal reach and impact.
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