Work

Does holding decision-makers accountable make them less loss averse? A three-study replication attempt

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: , the irrational tendency to overemphasize losses relative to gains. The present research initially aimed to clarify whether the reduced loss aversion under accountability reported by Vieider is driven by either process or outcome accountability. However, as we did not find any effects of either process or outcome accountability on loss aversion in two experiments, our focus shifted toward a direct replication attempt. Our third experiment used materials, procedures, and manipulations that closely matched those of the original study, and almost doubled its sample size. Despite these efforts, we still did not replicate Vieider's findings, with a Bayesian test providing substantial evidence in favor of the null hypothesis of no difference between experimental conditions. We discuss two potential reasons for this replication failure, namely the possible unsuitability of the loss aversion measure in the original study and our replication experiments, and the possibility of a missing link between accountability and loss aversion.

Source: Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology

DOI: 10.1177/17470218251369493

Authors: Johannes Rollwage, Jan Alexander Häusser, Stefan Schulz-Hardt

Institutions: University of Göttingen, Justus-Liebig-Universität Gießen

Language: English

Topic: Decision-Making and Behavioral Economics

Subfield: General Decision Sciences

Field: Decision Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,650

Funder: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft