The effects of financial incentives in experiments: A review and capital-labor-production framework (original) (raw)

This paper reviews how financial incentives affect experimental behavior, contrasting perspectives from economics and psychology. It synthesizes findings from 74 studies to show that while incentives generally influence performance in tasks requiring effort, their effects can vary greatly. Some tasks benefit from incentives leading to improved performance, especially those demanding memory or recall, while others may suffer potentially due to increased pressure or overlearning. The findings highlight the complexity of human motivation and the need for nuanced understanding in experimental design.